For a Few Chromosomes More
by MATT SUNSTON
Summary: Herein lies a gender-swap reworking of nearly the entire cast of Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, featuring new takes on characters, cases, and whatever else the game qualifies for. Follow (If you really want to, I mean) the career of rookie defense attorney Phoenix Wright as she searches relentlessly for the truth. Naturally, heavy spoilers will be involved.
1. A Preemptive Turnabout

**April 10th, 2013**

**Grossberg Law Offices**

"Good luck in the trial tomorrow, Mrs. Grossberg."

"Thank you, Micah. I'll see you next week."

The double doors of the stately office closed as Micah Fey slowly walked down the front steps. In one hand, he held a slightly coffee-stained travel mug, and in the other, a polished briefcase. His dark brown hair, tied into a small ponytail, ruffled slightly in the warm breeze. He sipped his coffee as he made his way to his car.

"Never been the best at making this stuff..." he muttered to himself after forcing down the bitter drink. He remotely unlocked the car's doors, and sat down. As he shut the door behind him, his cell phone suddenly began to ring. He glanced at the name on the screen.

-Lane Skye-

"Lane?" he inquired, answering the call.

"Hey, Mic. Sorry to bother you right after you got off work, but this is important." the voice of the detective on the phone said.

"What's going on?" Micah asked, his mind suddenly filling with possibilities.

"You heard about the murder at Ivy U yesterday, right?" Lane asked back.

"Yeah, of course. Mrs. Grossberg's handling the ca-"

"No, she's not. Not after you hear this." Lane cut in, furthering Micah's confusion.

"Why, what's up?" he asked, somewhat impatiently.

"It's the witness they brought in for the case. I saw the Chief talking to him; he'll be appearing in tomorrow's trial.

"And?" Micah asked, getting slightly agitated at Lane's vague answers.

"There's no doubt in my mind, Mic. That witness is Dalton Hawthorne."

The phone nearly slipped from Micah's hand. He stared blankly ahead for several seconds, unable to speak.

"I know this is a bad time, but we're never going to get another chance like this. I _know _he's got something to do with the murder." Lane added, breaking the silence. After another moment's silence, Micah responded.

"No, Lane. There's no time better. How long until you're off work?" he said, a note of force in his voice.

"I can be at your apartment in 40. Tell Grossberg to let you take the case. I'll see you soon." Lane replied.

"On it. See you then." Micah said, hanging up the phone. He started the car and made straight for his apartment, his mind already working furiously.

(Focus, Micah. This is for her.)

**April 11th, 2013**

**District Court**

**Defendant Lobby No. 3**

After a night spent downing mugs of coffee and poring over endless files, Micah was hardly in the optimal mental state. He paced the lobby, his mind still rushing. He and Lane had scavenged every last word of information that they could track down, perusing court records from all sides, every individual police report even remotely connected to the case, and whatever else was available.

"Good morning, Micah." came the voice of Marta Grossberg, breaking Micah out of his thoughts.

"Mrs. Grossberg? I didn't know you were still planning to come." he said, straightening up.

"Of course I was, Micah. This is only your second trial, after all." Grossberg said, before pausing for a moment. She seemed to be thinking very seriously about something. "Micah, what is it about this case that made you do this? Until last night, you hadn't given it a second thought." Micah didn't answer, his gaze dropping to the ground. "Micah, there's something more to this, isn't there? What did you learn about the case?" Another moment passed without an answer from Micah.

"Mrs. Grossberg..." he began after a prolonged silence, "After I left the office yesterday, I got a phone call from Detective Skye."

"Lane?" Grossberg inquired, concern crossing her face.

"Yeah...Lane told me about the witness who's going to be brought in today." Micah said quietly, still not raising his gaze. Grossberg waited for him to go on. "Mrs. Grossberg, the witness..." he broke off, taking in a deep breath to cool the rising anger in his voice. "The witness for today's trial is Dalton Hawthorne." he finally said, lifting this head to look his employer in the eye. Grossberg let out a light gasp. Her eyes seemed to darken.

"So, you two think he has something to do with the murder?" she asked after a pause, her usual kindly tone turning serious.

"We do." Micah replied simply.

"I understand." Grossberg said, her expression unreadable. "If that's the case, there is nobody I would trust other than you."

There was a mixture of concealed emotions in Grossberg's tone. In the years Micah had known the veteran attorney, he had rarely heard his employer letting her emotions into her work.

_She's a tough old bird._ The words rang in Micah's head.

"Excuse me, Mr. Fey?" came another voice. Micah turned to see a young woman, a few years younger than himself.

"Hello, Ms. Wright." he said. This young woman, Ms. Phoenix Wright, was a student in the university in which the murder had occurred, and for a multitude of reasons, was the investigation's prime suspect. She had the look of someone who no longer knew what to think. Micah had briefly spoken to her in the Detention Centre the night before, where she had seemed deeply conflicted about the entire event. She had vehemently insisted that she was not the murderer, but couldn't bring herself to suspect Hawthorne's involvement. As Micah understood it, Ms. Wright had been dating Dalton Hawthorne for a period of six months, and had never at any point suspected that he would ever be capable of committing a crime of any magnitude. When she had learned that Hawthorne would be testifying against her, a look of deep shock had appeared on her face as she was struck silent for several minutes.

"Mr. Fey, if what you've told me about Dalton is true," she said, clearly forcing her voice to remain level, "I trust you to bring the truth out." her expression became serious as she finished.

"I appreciate that, Ms. Wright. I promise you that I'll do everything I can to help you. I'll get you the right verdict, and, if I can manage it, I'll put Dalton Hawthorne away for good." Micah said. Ms. Wright lowered her head; she still seemed to be having difficulty accepting what she had been told about Dalton.

"The trial is about to begin. Would the defense and defendant please enter the courtroom?" one of the guards positioned by the door called.

"This is it, Ms. Wright." Micah said. Mrs. Grossberg placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I'll join you on the bench, Micah." she said. "We'll win this case. For your client's sake, and for Delia's."

* * *

The trial was an impressive spectacle. Micah fought with every last piece of evidence he had gathered, forcing his way toward the truth. Dalton Hawthorne, upon taking the stand, attempted to gain the sympathy of the court, putting on a façade of sadness and confusion. He hoped to convince the court that he had been fighting with his conscience for the past two days, trying to decide between protecting his girlfriend, or helping to bring about justice for the murder. In the end, however, his act collapsed as Micah broke past his lies and repeatedly connected him not only to the murder, but also to his past crimes. Finally, the man stood on the witness stand, gripping the wood surface violently, his knuckles whitening and his arms shaking. He glared savagely across the room toward Micah, his face taut with rage as the judge handed down the final verdict.

"I find the defendant, Ms. Phoenix Wright, not guilty. Court is adjourned."

Micah stood quietly in the lobby, a confused mass of feelings coursing through his mind. He had listened to Mrs. Grossberg's words of sincere congratulations minutes before, but their combined triumph could not shake the unsettled feeling that remained deep in his mind. Dalton Hawthorne had been brought to justice. He supposed that he should have felt at peace, but there remained a dark gap in his mind; a sense of something that would forever be missing. He was shaken from his thoughts by a voice.

"Mr. Fey? There's something I need to talk to you about." Phoenix said, approaching him. He turned.

"Yes, Ms. Wright?"

"I didn't tell you this before, but I've been attending Ivy U to become a defense attorney, like you." she said, a note of determination in her voice. "I wondered," she continued, "if you might let me study with you."

Micah looked Phoenix in the eye, and met a look of inspired confidence. He smiled.

"I think you may be onto something there, Ms. Wright."

* * *

_Author's Words of Less-Than Wisdom_

That takes care of our prologue. I've got no idea whether or not I'll be able to finish this entire fic, but I'm gonna be giving it my best effort. I've never attempted a gender-swap work before, so this'll be an interesting ride. It's a shame that I'll have to obliterate most of the name puns to make it work, though.

As usual, feedback is appreciated.


	2. The Opening Turnabout

**August 3rd, 2016 **

**9:47 AM**

**District Court**

**Defendant Lobby No. 2**

Phoenix Wright paced the length of the lobby, trying and failing to force her mind to relax. Her nerves were running in overdrive, and the confidence she had started the day with was nowhere in sight. A large mirror hung on the wall opposite the door. She stopped, taking a moment to examine herself.

While her attire gave the appearance of a professional, her face certainly didn't reflect it at the moment; her neck-length black hair framed an unusually pale face, and her grey eyes were slightly bloodshot. She shut her eyes.

(Deep breaths, Phoenix_.)_

"You can't just ignore me all day, Phoenix!" the exceptionally loud voice of Lexine Butz barked from next to her, only further shaking her frayed nerves. She spun around.

"I'm sorry, Lex. It's just... it's my first trial, and you're at stake here, and-"

"So _I'm _the one that ought to be nervous." Lexine cut in. "Hell, I oughta be breakin' down in front of you, given what happened to Carlos." Phoenix took this in. Lexine Butz had been her best friend since their school days, and had never been one to lose her spirit, regardless of the situation. Even now, with her latest boyfriend dead and she herself framed for the murder, the tomboyish young woman kept her head up, the very picture of confidence.

"You don't need to apologize, Phoenix." Lexine said, roughly patting her on the shoulder. "You're my best friend, and I trust you."

"Thanks." Phoenix muttered, glancing toward the doors. At that moment, they swung open.

"Morning, Phoenix. You all ready for your debut?" asked her mentor, Micah Fey, as the doors closed behind him.

"Guess I am, Boss." she answered, attempting a smile.

"C'mon, Phoenix." Micah said, "You don't need to be this worried. I'll be right there on the bench with you the whole time." Phoenix gave a half-hearted shrug.

"It's just that Lex is on the line here, and-"

"I understand, Phoenix." Micah said patiently. "Your friend is innocent, and we're going to be able to prove it."

"Er, thanks, Boss." Phoenix said. Micah smiled.

"Not a problem." he said. "Now, get ready for real. The trial's starting in two minutes."

**August 3rd, 10:00 AM**

**District Court**

**Courtroom No. 2**

The ongoing chatter from the gallery vanished as the judge struck his gavel.

"The court is now in session for the trial of Ms. Lexine Butz." he announced.

"The prosecution is ready, Your Honour." the prosecutor said in a reedy voice.

"Th-The defense is ready, Your Honour." Phoenix stammered slightly too quickly. The judge glanced toward her.

"Ms. Wright, this is your first trial, correct?" he asked calmly.

"Er, yes, Your Honour." Phoenix replied. "I'm just a bit nervous." The judge nodded.

"I'd advise you to keep a level head. Your behaviour will decide the fate of your client, after all. This is a very serious charge."

"Of course, Your Honour." Phoenix said, steadying her voice.

"I presume that you have taken down the case's details in your court record?"

"Yes, Your Honour."

The judge nodded again.

"Very well. Mr. Payne, you may call your first witness."

"Yes, your Honour. The prosecution calls the defendant, Ms. Lexine Butz to the stand." Payne said in the same reedy voice. Phoenix turned to Micah.

"Boss, anything I should know?"

"Just make sure to pay attention. This information will be important." Micah said firmly. A moment later, Lexine stopped at the witness stand.

"Ms. Butz, am I correct in saying that your relationship with the victim, Mr. Carlos Stone, was getting a bit shaky in the time before the murder?" Payne asked. Lexine glanced aside, looking mildly annoyed.

"You could say that, yeah." she said dismissively.

"Am I also correct when I say that, until the day of the murder, Mr. Stone was on a business trip in Paris?" Payne continued. Lexine sighed impatiently.

"Yeah. He left three weeks ago, on the Tuesday."

"This trip, it was related to his freight company, correct?" Payne went on. Lexine seemed to be running out of patience with his questions.

"Yes. He was supposed to be gone for another week, but something came up, and he had to come back." she said. Payne gave a small chuckle.

"Very well." the judge said, nodding. "If you would, Ms. Butz, please testify to the court about Mr. Stone's early return."

"Ehh, all right." Lexine said, shrugging.

"Pay attention, Phoenix." Micah whispered. "Ask her any questions that you think you might need, but don't worry too much about Payne. He's not a particularly threatening opponent." Phoenix nodded.

"Like I said, Carlos left three weeks ago. He was going to Paris for about a month to work out a deal with some big-name company over there. Everything seemed to be going alright until two days ago." Lexine said.

"HOLD IT!" Phoenix shouted. Everyone in the courtroom turned at her outburst, staring at her. "Um... Hold it. Lexine, you're sure that this problem came up two days ago?" she asked, nervously glancing around the room. Lexine paused for a moment.

"Well, that's when he called me about it. I guess it could have been earlier, but-"

"Your Honour, I doubt this is relevant to this case." Payne cut in. The judge shook his head.

"It would seem that way. Ms. Wright, please try to stick to important points." he said.

"Right... " Phoenix muttered, dropping her gaze.

"It's OK, Phoenix. Just keep calm." Micah said soothingly.

"Anyway, he called to tell me about a problem with his documents for the trip," Lexine continued.

"Hold it!" Phoenix yelled again, slightly more quietly. "I should have asked this before, but what was the problem that forced Mr. Stone to return early?"

"Your Honour, this can't be-" Payne began, but the judge cut across him.

"I'll allow it this time." he said. Lexine nodded.

"I'll just let all of you hear about it from Carlos himself. He explains it better, after all." she said. The judge raised his eyebrows.

"From the victim? But that's not possible!"

"Your Honour, Ms. Butz is in the habit of recording her calls on her cell phone." Phoenix explained, hoping to avoid any confusion. The judge relaxed.

"I see. Very well, Ms. Butz, you may play this recording."

"On it." Lexine said, turning on her cell phone. Shortly after, a tone sounded from the phone.

"_Call from Carlos Stone."_

"Carlos?" said Lexine's voice.

"Hey, Lex." said a deeper voice. "Sorry to bother you, but there's a problem over here. I can't talk for long, I haven't got much long-distance time left. Basically, I lost one of my documents before I left, but I didn't notice at the time. I'm pretty sure it's somewhere in your apartment, so I'm about to catch a plane back to pick it up. The trip's funding covers the extra flights, so there's nothing to worry about." There was an odd sort of echo in Carlos's voice.

"What'd it look like?" Lexine's voice asked.

"It's in a fairly small grey envelope that's marked with "Transferral Confirmation". It should be in my extra filing bin, which I left in your apartment." Carlos's voice said. There was a pause, with the sound of Lexine shuffling through what sounded like a box of papers, before she spoke again.

"This looks like it." she said.

"You found it? Great, thanks. Listen, I've gotta catch the flight, I'll see you tomorrow to pick it up." Carlos said quickly. "Meet me at my place, it's closer."

"Got it. See you tomorrow, Cal." Lexine said.

"Bye."

There was a beep, and the recording stopped.

"That's all." Lexine said, putting her phone back into her pocket.

"Ms. Butz, what was the reason for that strange echo in the recording's background?" the judge asked.

"I had the call on speaker phone." Lexine said. The judge nodded.

"I see. It would seem that this call places both you and Mr. Stone at his apartment in time for the murder." he said. Phoenix flinched, a light sweat forming on her neck.

"This doesn't look too good, Boss." she mumbled, turning to Micah.

"Don't panic yet, Phoenix. There's still room for someone else at the scene." he replied.

"Right... "

"Hee hee hee... " Payne's tiny laugh could be heard from his bench. "Tell us what happened the following day, when you went to Mr. Stone's apartment." he said, a smug look on his face.

"Alright." Lexine said, glaring at Payne. "When I got to Carlos' apartment, he was waiting in the entryway. The door was open. I gave him the document, and he got me to leave pretty quickly. I guess he needed to get ready for his return flight."

"Hold it!" Phoenix called again. "Lex, what time was it when you gave him the document?"

"About 9:40 in the morning." Lexine answered. Phoenix glanced down at the papers on the bench.

"According to the autopsy report, Carlos was killed at about 9:50, in his apartment. Did you see anyone else there at the time?" she inquired.

"I wasn't really looking around much, but there wasn't anybody on the balcony I was on." Phoenix began to sweat again.

"Er, thanks, Lex." she stammered. Payne's irritating laugh sounded from the other end of the room again.

"This does cast further suspicion on Ms. Butz." the judge said. "Mr. Payne, I believe you had a second witness to call?"

"Yes, Your Honour. But first, I'd like to bring some details about the crime scene to the court's attention." Payne said. "Firstly, we have the murder weapon. Mr. Stone was killed by traumatic force to both sides of his head, which was found to be from having the front door to his apartment slammed shut on his head." There was a ripple of cringing around the room. "Importantly, the door handle was found to bear only the fingerprints of Ms. Butz and Mr. Stone."

"Damn... " Phoenix whispered as Payne went on.

"Secondly, I must confess that we were unable to find the document that Ms. Butz spoke about anywhere in or near the apartment." he said.

"That is most unfortunate." the judge said. "Now then, your witness, Mr. Payne?"

"Of course. On the day of the murder, my witness was selling newspapers in the victim's apartment complex. Please bring Ms. Fern Sahwit to the stand!" Payne called. The bailiff stepped out of the courtroom.

"This is where it gets serious, Phoenix. You've got your information, now you need to use it find the holes in the witness's testimony." Micah said firmly.

A few moments later, the bailiff returned, followed by a short and seedy-looking woman, who took the stand.

"State your name and occupation, please." Payne said. The woman put on an outrageously forced smile and nodded.

"Certainly. My name is Fern Sahwit. I sell newspaper subscriptions door-to-door." she said in a simpering voice. Phoenix groaned.

_(Why do I already feel like I'm gonna hate this woman?)_

"Ms. Wright, you may begin your cross-examination. Ms. Sahwit, please testify to the court about what you witnessed on the day of the murder." the judge said.

"Of course, Your Honour." Sahwit said in the same simpering voice. "I was going about my usual business, shortly before 10,"

"Hold it!" Phoenix yelled once again. "Ms. Sahwit, do you know exactly what time it was at that point?" she asked.

"I can't remember specifically, but I suppose it must have been around 9:45, or so." Sahwit responded, still flashing her incredibly fake smile.

"Alright, go on." Phoenix said, jotting down a note.

"As I neared the scene, I saw a young woman, Ms. Butz there, leaving the victim's apartment. She seemed to be in quite a hurry."

"Hold it!" Sahwit's smile faded slightly.

"Yes, Ms. Wright?" she asked.

"Are you certain that it was my client that you saw there?" Phoenix questioned.

"Of course I'm certain. I recognize her appearance, and there was nobody else around." Sahwit said lightly. Phoenix gestured for her to carry on. "As the woman left, I noticed that she had left the door open slightly. I thought this was odd, so I approached and glanced into the room. There, I found the victim, his head bleeding profusely!"

"Hold it!"

"_Yes, Ms. Wright?_" Sahwit growled, her false smile completely vanishing.

"You claim that the victim was already dead when Ms. Butz left the apartment, correct?" Phoenix asked.

"That's what I said." Sahwit answered, her voice quivering slightly. "The defendant must have killed him just before I rounded the corner."

"That seems odd. Not only does it not match up with what Ms. Butz told us earlier, but shouldn't you have heard a struggle if the murder occurred so near to you?" Phoenix went on.

"That does seem a bit odd." the judge agreed. "Ms. Sahwit, did you, by any chance, hear anything from the victim's apartment at the time?"

"I didn't hear anything of the sort." Sahwit snapped.

"Hm. Mr. Payne, do you have anything to add?" the judge asked.

"I-... Um... No, Your Honour." Payne said, looking a bit nervous. The judge shook his head.

"I believe this requires further testimony. The autopsy report confirms that the murder did occur at roughly the time that Ms. Sahwit describes, but it does seem odd that there wouldn't be any sound of struggle from such a violent attack. Ms. Sahwit, please go into a bit more detail about the moments before you reached the victim's apartment."

"Fine." Sahwit said through her teeth. "The apartment block is in a relatively noisy area of the city, so if I did hear any sounds coming from the apartment, I didn't distinguish them from the other noises in the area." she suddenly glared at Phoenix, as if daring her to interrupt. She did not, and Sahwit continued, "I didn't hear much speech either, but if the defendant was just giving the victim a document when she arrived, she wouldn't have needed to-"

"OBJECTION!" Phoenix shouted, standing up straight and dramatically pointing her finger toward Sahwit.

_"_What is it _now, _Ms. Wright?" Sahwit asked, agitated. Phoenix smirked.

"Ms. Sahwit, you claim not to have heard anything said by either of the people present in the apartment, correct?" she inquired.

"Yes, Ms. Wright. Nothing of the sort." Sahwit growled, to which Phoenix chuckled.

"If that's the case, Ms. Sahwit," she paused briefly, "then how could you possibly have known that Ms. Butz's reason for being there was to give Mr. Stone a document?" Sahwit flinched.

"I- er... I was... " she stammered, unable to answer. After a moment, however, she seemed to compose herself. "I... I suppose I should have mentioned this earlier. On the day before the murder, I was selling subscriptions in a different building. It must have been the building that Ms. Butz lives in, because I heard her discussing it with Mr. Stone there." Phoenix shook her head lightly.

"That's quite a coincidence, Ms. Sahwit." she said.

"Indeed." the judge said, nodding.

"Well, yes, I-" Sahwit was stammering again, "I suppose it is... "

"Ms. Butz's apartment complex is quite a distance from Mr. Stone's. Surely there are more buildings that you could have been working nearer to Ms. Butz's?" Phoenix continued, not letting the pressure off. Sahwit couldn't seem to form an answer. Phoenix smirked again, a sudden inspiration coming to her. "Do you want to know what sounds more likely to me? I think that you must have heard Ms. Butz talking with Mr. Stone about the document, and followed her to his apartment the following day!" she said.

"Objection!" Payne yelled in an astonishing high-pitched voice. "Y-your Honour, this is undue badgering of my witness!" The judge looked uncertain.

"Ms. Wright," he asked, "this is quite an accusation you are making. Why do you suspect this of Ms. Sahwit?"

"Well, Your Honour, Mr. Stone was a fairly notable businessman, being the CEO of a freight company. If Ms. Sahwit was present outside Ms. Butz's apartment when Mr. Stone called her about the document, it doesn't seem unreasonable to suspect that she may have had some questionable thoughts about this document. After all, if it were important enough that Mr. Stone would travel all the way back from France just to retrieve it, it would certainly have been quite valuable." Phoenix said confidently, crossing her arms as she stared at Sahwit, "Perhaps even enough to inspire Ms. Sahwit to go as far as to steal it!" she finished, slamming her palms onto the tabletop. A loud rumble of speech broke out through the gallery as Payne leapt back in shock.

"Order! Order!" the judge shouted, striking his gavel until the noise died down. "I do find it quite unlikely that Ms. Sahwit would happen to be at these two seemingly unrelated places with the perfect timing to encounter these two conversations between the defendant and the victim. Mr. Payne, what are your thoughts?"

"Er... this is... Ms. Wright is just continuing to badger my-"

"I'm afraid not, Mr. Payne." the judge cut in. "Ms. Wright raises a very good point." he looked thoughtful for a moment. "Tell me, Mr. Payne. Do you have any evidence related to your witness to submit that may support her claim?" Payne was hunched over, now looking quite nervous.

"Y-yes, Your Honour. The witness gave the police her work satchel when they arrived at the crime scene. It contained a stack of subscription forms and two pairs of latex gloves." he said, sweating.

"Very well. The court will accept these items into evidence."

In her break from speaking, Ms. Sahwit seemed to be relaxing. Her forced smile had reappeared, and she was standing upright again.

"Ms. Sahwit," Phoenix began, "I notice that you are not wearing gloves at the moment." she observed.

"You're right. I only wear them on the job. It wouldn't do to be rubbing ink all over the other newspapers, after all." Sahwit said, back to her simpering tone.

"But, didn't we just hear that there are only order forms in your satchel?" Phoenix asked. Sahwit let out a panicked sort of noise. "Surely you don't need gloves if all your job involves is subscription forms?" Sahwit fell silent again, and Phoenix decided to take another jab. "Although, if we go back to my earlier point about the possibility that you planned to steal the document from Mr. Stone, we get an explanation for both your choice to wear gloves and for the document itself to be missing!" she slammed her palms on the table again. "After all, if you entered Mr. Stone's apartment to kill him and then stole the document, you wouldn't have left fingerprints on it or the door!"

_"Gaaah!"_ Sahwit's yell was all Phoenix needed.

"Objection!" Payne blurted, sounding quite panicked himself. "I... Your Honour... "

"Overruled." the judge said, shaking his head. "Well, Ms. Sahwit? As sudden as Ms. Wright's accusation is, if your behaviour is any indication, it's not far from correct." Sahwit looked livid. Her teeth were gritted, and she was still unable to give a response.

"Hee hee hee... " Phoenix suddenly stared toward Payne. Somehow, he was laughing again. "Well, this is all fine and good, Ms. Wright, but do you have any proof? Can you prove my witness did any of those things?"

"I... wait... " Phoenix paused, her confidence vanishing. "I... I don't... " she said, slumping. Payne laughed quietly again.

"That is most unfortunate, Ms. Wright." the judge said, shaking his head. "This is quite a detour we've taken. Ms. Sahwit, if you would, please finish your earlier testimony."

"O-of course, Your Honour." Sahwit said, trying to restore her fake smile.

"Dammit... " Phoenix muttered.

"That was incredible, Phoenix." Micah whispered. "I know it looks bad right now, but you haven't lost yet. You've almost got her."

"But, Boss, there's nothing left for me to... " Phoenix began, breaking off as Sahwit resumed speaking.

"As I was saying, I found the victim on the floor, his head bleeding from injuries on both sides,"

"Hold it!" Phoenix shouted once again, getting desperate for a lead. Sahwit seemed to be a breath away from shouting in response. "Um, what else did you notice about the scene?" Phoenix asked.

"Well," Sahwit was gritting her teeth again, "there was a mark on the wall and door, so I thought that the victim must have had his head struck between the door and the frame-" she stopped as Phoenix let out a relieved laugh.

"Thank you for that last bit, Ms. Sahwit. That was exactly what I needed." she said, casually flicking her bangs aside to improve the effect of her intense stare.

"What do you mean... ?" Sahwit growled.

"It says right here in the autopsy report that the traces of blood found on the door and door frame were only found when the forensics team was called in." Phoenix said, reading off the report.

"W-what!?" Payne yelped, panicking again.

"I think there's only one conclusion here, Your Honour." Phoenix said, her confident smile returning. She cast her arm forward again, pointing her finger at Sahwit. "Ms. Fern Sahwit, or perhaps I should say, Ms. Fern Did It, the only way you could have known how the victim was killed at the time was if you killed him yourself!"

Sahwit was uttering a series of incoherent growls. As the crowd's loud speech returned, she let out an enraged yell, slamming a fist down on the witness stand.

"_You... with your 'objections' and your 'evidence'... "_ were the only words that could be distinguished from her guttural tone.

"I think this proves my point, Your Honour." Phoenix said, turning toward the judge, who, while looking quite surprised, nodded.

"I think I must agree, Ms. Wright. Bailiff, if you would." he said. The bailiff stepped forward to restrain Ms. Sahwit, who immediately began to flail her arms as she was dragged from the courtroom.

After the bailiff returned, the judge looked toward Phoenix.

"Well, Ms. Wright. I must say, I'm quite impressed. I don't think I've ever seen someone complete a defense in such a short time, and find the true culprit at the same time."

"Thank you, Your Honour." Phoenix said, giving a nod.

"Now then, at this point, this is just a formality, but this court hereby finds the defendant, Ms. Lexine Butz, not guilty."

The crowd broke into applause, and Phoenix looked around in slight confusion as confetti began to rain down from around the courtroom.

"Court is adjourned."

**August 3rd, 2:32 PM**

**District Court**

**Defendant Lobby No. 2**

"Congratulations, Phoenix! That was a fantastic performance in there." Micah said, clapping Phoenix on the back.

"Th-thanks, Boss. It was all because of you, though... " Phoenix said, her face reddening very slightly.

"Not a chance. You did all the work in there." Micah said, waving a hand dismissively.

"Hey, Phoenix!" came Lexine's voice, just a moment before she tackled Phoenix in a hug. "Thanks for everything." she said as she pulled away. "Hey, why don't we all go get dinner, my treat?" she suggested, looking from Phoenix to Micah. Phoenix glanced at her mentor, as well.

"That sounds great." Micah said after a moment's pause.

As the trio left the courthouse, Micah turned to Phoenix.

"Well, Phoenix, I hope you understand a bit more about what you're here for now; what being an attorney is really about. Remember, we can never really know if our clients are guilty or not. All we can do is trust in them. That's one of the things I value the very most. Always trust in your client, no matter what." he said, smiling.

"I think I do understand, Boss." Phoenix said, returning the smile.

* * *

And that concludes our introductory case. As you can see, I'm being fairly particular about who I apply Rule 63 to, as there are some characters I just can't stand to change, like our dear old Udgey.

Like always, feedback is appreciated.


	3. Cutting the Thread

**September 5th, 10:09 AM**

**Phoenix Wright's Apartment**

Phoenix sat up, finally content with her extended rest. She glanced out the window adjacent to her bed. The city was, naturally, already beyond busy, the usual mass of vehicles trailing along in the street below. She slid out of bed, her feet fumbling on the floor in an effort to locate her slippers, before shuffling out of her bedroom. After a brief shower and breakfast, she left the apartment, heading for her car. Her cell phone rang as she reached her vehicle, and she glanced down at the screen.

-Micah Fey-

"Boss?"

"Morning, Phoenix. Sorry to call before you get in to work, but the plan's changed a bit." Micah's voice responded.

"What's up?" Phoenix asked.

"I need you to stop by the police station before you come here." Micah said.

"Sure thing," Phoenix said, starting the car. "What for?"

"I, uh..." Micah began distractedly, "I need you to pick up some documents."

"These'll be for your...what was it...? A blackmailing case?" Phoenix backed into the street, starting for the precinct.

"Yeah. I sent a message to the department already, so you shouldn't have any trouble getting it. Just tell them that you're there for me." Micah said, sounding as if he was a fair distance away from his phone.

"You do sound busy." Phoenix remarked.

"Yeah, I'm trying to find my tools-" he cut off for a moment, "They're not in the drawer, and I'm _sure _that I left them there last time..."

"Well, I'll get out of your way for now. I'll give you a call once I've got the files." Phoenix said.

"Right. Talk to you then, Phoenix." Micah said. A moment later, the call ended.

**September 5th, 10:51 AM**

**Criminal Affairs Department**

Phoenix left her car and started toward the front doors of the precinct. There were two detectives standing near the entrance, apparently deep in conversation. One gave a noncommittal jerk of the head as Phoenix passed, which she supposed was meant as a greeting. As she entered the building, a loud voice sounded from the other end of the room.

"-and if you've got a problem with that, Chief, there's nothin' I can do to help you!" the speaker was a tall, red-haired woman, who was crossing the room from the elevated desk of a man whom Phoenix surmised to be the Chief Detective. The tall woman stopped outside the door of another room, writing something in a book she had been carrying, and Phoenix approached.

"Excuse me," Phoenix said, and the woman looked up.

"Somethin' I can help you with?" she asked, glancing at Phoenix's clothing.

"Er, yes, I'm here to pick up some files for-"

"Micah Fey, right? Follow me." the woman abruptly cut in. At Phoenix's nod, she turned around and opened the door. "Yep, Mic's been pesterin' me to track down these files for ages."

"So, you know Micah, then." Phoenix said, following.

"Sure do. Guy's been a big help to the force in the past." the woman stopped suddenly and turned back to face Phoenix. "Say... you'll be that rookie defense attorney from last month, won't you? Micah's student?"

Phoenix nodded. "Phoenix Wright." she said, smiling and offering a hand. The woman briefly shook her hand before turning back to the large cabinets that lined the room's wall.

"Yeah, I read the report about your performance in your debut." she said, opening a drawer. "Heh, if I've ever seen a bigger load of bluffin'..." she began to thumb through the thick row of files tucked into the drawer.

"Er-" Phoenix wasn't sure how to respond, uncertain as to whether she had just been complimented or insulted.

"I'm just messin' with ya." the woman said with a laugh. "Ah, there it is." she closed the drawer, having extracted a folder from it. "Anyway," she turned back to Phoenix, offering her the folder, "Name's Debra Gumshoe. Homicide Detective."

"Thanks." Phoenix muttered, taking the file.

"Yeah, tell Micah he can finally get off my back about that one, would ya?" Gumshoe said, resuming her writing as Phoenix backed out of the room.

"Will do." Phoenix replied. As she walked back to the front doors, she looked down at the folder she had received. The cover read,

_"DL-6 Comprehensive Invest. - Grossberg Incident"_

_Grossberg,_ the name stood out in Phoenix's mind. She vaguely recalled it from somewhere, but couldn't seem to remember the specifics. Remembering her promise from earlier, she pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and quickly dialed Micah's number, only to hear a busy tone.

(Guess I'll ask Micah when I give it to him.)

**September 5th, 10:50 AM**

**Fey & Co. Law Offices**

Micah cast one last look around the room. His tools were nowhere to be found, though he had no memory of having moved them anywhere. Frustrated, he sat down at his desk, glancing at the clock.

-10:50-

"Phoenix ought to be here pretty soon..." he mumbled, picking up his cell phone. He dialed a number, leaning back in his chair. After a few seconds of silence, the line picked up.

"Micah?" asked a familiar voice.

"Hey, Matty. How're things going?" he asked in response.

"Pretty well. I think I'll be able to strike a deal with the landlord by tomorrow, so I should be moved in within the next few days." Matty answered.

"That's great." Micah said, smiling, "You made any progress with those old letters I sent you?"

"One of 'em, yeah. It's a bit too much to talk about over the phone, though." Matty paused. After a moment, he continued, "Hey, why don't I come over to the office and show you what I've got personally?"

Micah glanced downward, thinking it over.

"Alright, sure. Come on over. You can finally meet my student, too." he said.

"That's... the Wright lady, right?" Matty inquired.

"Yep, the one I told you about. You should have seen her first trial; it was incredible, the way she caught on to the real criminal, and-"

"Save it 'til I get there, alright?" Matty cut in, sounding as if he was about to laugh. "I doubt Ms. Wright would mind hearing you talk about it like that herself."

"Alright, Matty. Talk to you when you get here." Micah said.

"I'll be there in a few minutes. Bye!" Matty answered, hanging up. Micah set the phone down, looking back at the clock. Just then, he heard a noise from the main room of the office.

"Phoenix?" he called. "Door's unlocked, Phoenix, I'll be there in a sec!"

There was no response. Micah leaned toward the door, confused.

"... Phoenix?" he called again.

"Thank you for the gracious welcome, Mr. Fey," a feminine voice answered, "I really do appreciate it." the voice was familiar, but it definitely wasn't Phoenix. Micah jumped to his feet, moving to the door. No sooner had he left his office than he suddenly felt a crushing blow strike his head. He gave a harsh yell of pain as he dropped to the floor. His vision immediately began to fade as the pain in his head worsened. He felt a steady stream of warm liquid beginning to flow through his hair. The attacker stepped over him. "Before I go, Mr. Fey, I feel I should let you know why I'm here: I need to collect that impressive file you've put together. Thank you for gathering everything up so nicely." Micah struggled to force himself off the ground.

"Oh, don't strain yourself, Mr. Fey. It's really not healthy." the attacker said, with a hint of a laugh. "I'll be going now, good afternoon, Mr. Fey." Micah heard the woman take half a step back, before she swung her arm downward at him again. Another heavy blow struck his head, and everything vanished.

* * *

Phoenix entered the building, taking a look at her watch.

_-11:14-_

She supposed that Micah would probably be off the phone by this point, but there wasn't much sense in calling him when she was less than a minute's walk from the office. When she was halfway up the stairs, something caught her attention. From the floor above, where Micah's office was, she heard an odd noise that was clearly being made by a person, but it wasn't loud enough to properly make out. She began to climb the stairs slightly faster, and the noise was punctuated by a loud_ thud._

She reached the landing, and looked over toward the office door. It was half opened, and she could now clearly tell that she was hearing the sound of someone crying.

"Micah?" she called out, approaching the door. Hearing no response, she pushed the door open, and gasped as she looked inside. There was a boy, looking to be in his late teens, slumped on the floor, one hand curled into a fist, hanging his head as tears fell steadily from his face. On the ground in front of him was a horribly familiar body, a large pool of blood formed around its head. She froze, staring at the scene uncomprehendingly.

"Boss...?" Phoenix whispered, her eyes widened. The younger boy looked up, his face streaked with tears. A second later, he dropped his head back down as another sob escaped him. "Micah...!" Phoenix choked, rushing to her mentor's side. She dropped the case file she had been carrying and placed a hand against Micah's pale neck. There was very little warmth left in him, and it continued to fade under her touch. As she struggled to avoid breaking into tears herself, the boy raised his hand off the floor and slammed it back down with a painful crunch. Instinctively, Phoenix reached her free hand over and placed it on the boy's arm. He looked up at her again.

"W-who are you?" he forced out.

"I'm...my name is Phoenix Wright." Phoenix said, her voice shaking as she felt tears beginning to sting her eyes. The boy seemed to acknowledge her response, but without warning, he suddenly dropped to his side, unconscious. Phoenix hesitated for a moment, before shifting over and placing her arms under the boy's body. Lifting him off the ground, she moved toward the couch and placed him down on it. As she did so, she finally had a moment to properly examine his appearance. He had black hair, much like her own, which was tied back into a small ponytail, near identical to Micah's. He wore a bizarre set of white and magenta robes, and around his neck hung a small charm in the shape of a nine, which Phoenix also recognized; Micah had one identical to it. Phoenix placed the back of her hand against the boy's forehead and he suddenly stirred. His eyes opened and locked on to hers.

"... I'm Matty Fey..." he said in a quiet and cracked voice, "M-Micah's brother." he sat up suddenly, staring toward the window. Phoenix turned and looked as well. Across the street stood the Gatewater Hotel, and in a window directly across from them was a man, staring intently toward them. As Phoenix looked at him in confusion, he reached a hand up to the window's curtains and pulled them shut. A second later, she caught the sound of police sirens approaching. She rushed to the window and saw a small squad of cars coming to a halt at the curb next to the office. A few seconds later, a rush of footsteps appeared from the hall.

"Freeze!" came a loud voice. Phoenix spun around, her hands in the air. In the doorway stood a detective and two police officers, their guns drawn. "Hang on," said the detective. "Ms. Wright? What happened here?" It was Detective Gumshoe, from the precinct. She looked at Micah's body, still lying on the floor. "Is that..." she mumbled, her arms drooping slightly.

"M-Micah's dead." Phoenix whispered, her tears starting to appear again. Gumshoe suddenly looked sternly up at Matty.

"Who're you?" she asked in an almost demanding tone.

"M-Matty Fey." he choked.

"Fey, huh?" Gumshoe said, still staring at him. "You're under arrest." she and the two officers moved forward. One grabbed Matty's wrists as the other clamped a set of handcuffs onto him. Phoenix stared in shock.

"What-"

"We just got a call back at the station from the hotel across the way. Fella said that he saw a young man attackin' an older one. Whackin' him over the head, he said." Gumshoe said sternly.

"But he's-" Phoenix said before being interrupted again.

"Related to Micah, I take it." Gumshoe said. One of the officers turned to Phoenix.

"We're going to have to bring you in for questioning as well, Miss." he said. The other was examining the folder that Phoenix had brought in.

"This is from the station." he said, looking up at Gumshoe.

"That's... the DL-6 file I just gave you back at the station, isn't it?" she asked. Phoenix nodded silently. She noticed that Matty hadn't made a noise since the police had arrived. He was hanging his head in complete silence as one of the officers led him out of the office.

"Deb?" said the other officer. Gumshoe turned to him. "I think we've got our murder weapon." Phoenix jerked her head toward him. The officer was examining a steel hammer, which was stained deeply red. "You recognize this, Ms. Wright?" the officer asked. Phoenix looked at it for a moment, unable to think clearly.

"Not immediately." she said, looking away. The officer watched her briefly, uncertain, but stood up and picked up his radio. As he began to rattle off a series of code words to the dispatcher, Gumshoe motioned for Phoenix to leave with her. They walked out of the office, Phoenix still trying to avoid breaking into tears.

**September 6th, 9:07 AM**

**Detention Centre**

**Visitor's Room**

Phoenix sat in silence, waiting for the guard to speak. She had spent about an hour in questioning the previous day before being released, but the results of the autopsy report, combined with Gumshoe's knowledge of her whereabouts at the time of Micah's murder had removed any suspicion from her. She had returned to her apartment for the remainder of the day afterward, and as the horrible realization that Micah was gone properly set in, she had finally broken down, spending much of the day lying down and openly sobbing. However, even through her own emotional struggles, one goal remained firm in her mind, and it was that goal that brought her here, to the dingy visitor's room of the detention centre.

"Ms. Wright, Mr. Fey can see you now." the guard in the back of the room said at last. Phoenix immediately moved to the chair in front of the window as the guard led Micah's brother into the room.

"It's you..." he said quietly as he sat down. "The lawyer..."

"That's right." Phoenix said, nodding. "Phoenix Wright."

"Mic told me about you..." Matty mumbled, hanging his head. Phoenix stared at him. If she felt as if she was going through a hard time with Micah's death, she couldn't imagine what his younger brother was feeling.

"Your name is Matty, right?" she asked gently. He nodded once, his eyes still downcast. Phoenix had checked in with the police and found that Matty would be put on trial for Micah's murder the following day, and she wasn't going to have many chances to make him an offer in the remaining time. Saying nothing, she detached her attorney's badge from her chest and placed it on the counter. Matty looked up and stared at it for several seconds. After a considerable silence, he began to quietly speak again.

"A long time ago, Mic told me about a famous defense attorney he used to know. He said that...that if I ever got into trouble, I could go there for help." as he stopped, he took a pen and a scrap of paper from a notepad on the counter and scribbled down an address. Holding it up to Phoenix, he said, "This is the address. Could you go there for me? I need you to ask for that lawyer." Phoenix nodded solemnly.

"I'll be back as soon as I see them." she said, standing up. The guard escorted Matty back out of the room as Phoenix turned to leave.

**September 6th, 9:44 AM**

**Grossberg Law Offices**

Phoenix read the nameplate on the wall of the stately office building.

-GROSSBERG LAW OFFICES-

Now she remembered where she had heard the name from: Grossberg was the name of Micah's mentor from his early days in law. She pushed the door open, looking around. A short woman at a desk smiled to her.

"How can I help you?" she asked. Phoenix paused. If she remembered correctly, there were quite a few attorneys in this office, but it seemed most likely that Grossberg was the one Matty was referring to.

"I need to see Attorney Grossberg." she answered slowly. The woman nodded.

"Certainly. I'll let her know you're coming right away. Just take the elevator up to the fourth floor, her office is at the end of the hall." said the secretary, motioning to the nearby elevator. Phoenix entered the small elevator, pushing the button for the fourth floor. As the lift began to move, she tried to remember what Micah had told her about his old boss. Nothing sprang to mind, and the doors opened again, leaving her to hope for the best. She knocked on the door at the end of the hall, and a moment later, it opened. Standing in the doorway was a much older woman, an inquisitive look on her lined face.

"Please, come in. How can I help you, dear?" she asked in a kindly voice. Phoenix entered the office and turned back to Mrs. Grossberg.

"Mrs. Grossberg, my name is Phoenix Wright. I'm a defense attorney from Fey and Co. Law Offices." Grossberg smiled.

"Micah said he had a student making her debut a short while ago. I suppose that's you, then?" she said approvingly. "What brings you here?" Phoenix glanced downward, unsure about how best to reply.

"Mrs. Grossberg, it's about Micah." she said shakily. A flicker of concern appeared on Grossberg's face. "He's..." Phoenix took a deep breath; her voice was threatening to break again, "Micah's... been murdered." Grossberg gasped, clapping a hand to her mouth.

"I... I need to sit down..." she shuddered, lowering herself into a chair and motioning for Phoenix to do the same. After a pause, she asked in a whisper, "When did it happen?"

"Yesterday. Just before noon." Phoenix said, dropping into another chair. "I... I found him in the office." Mrs. Grossberg was gently dabbing at her eyes, clearly still in shock. She didn't say anything. "There's... there's more." Phoenix said, her composure starting to slip. "Micah's brother has been arrested for the murder. That's why I'm here." Grossberg looked up at her. "He's asked me to request that you defend him." Grossberg opened her mouth, as if to agree, but something seemed to occur to her at the very same moment.

After a pause, she asked, "Ms. Wright, what was Micah doing before he was killed?" she had an odd look in her eye as she spoke.

"He was... investigating a blackmailing case." Phoenix answered. "I had just been picking up a case file from the police station for him, but when I went back to the office..." she trailed off. Grossberg had closed her eyes and hung her head sadly as she listened.

"I'm... afraid I can't help you, Ms. Wright." she said quietly. Phoenix blanched.

"But, Mrs. Grossberg-"

"I would like nothing more than to help you and Matty, but the circumstances are beyond my control. I'm truly sorry, Ms. Wright."

Phoenix stared. The old woman looked tired and deeply shaken.

"Please, go back to Matty. Do whatever you can, Ms. Wright." were the final words she uttered before lapsing into complete silence. Phoenix glanced toward the clock, and stood up.

"Thank you for your time, Mrs. Grossberg." she said, walking to the door. As the door closed behind her, she heard a heaving sigh. She knew that she couldn't possibly understand Mrs. Grossberg's situation, but if there was something going on that was severe enough to prevent the veteran attorney from defending Matty, she was certain that it would be worth investigating.

* * *

So, there's another one. We're setting up plot threads all around, so the next chapter ought to be interesting.

As ever, feedback is appreciated. I'll have an important question for you fine folks quite soon, as well.


	4. Every Which Way

**September 6th, 10:20 AM**

**Detention Centre**

**Visitor's Room**

A tiny hint of happiness lit Matty's face as Phoenix sat down in front of him.

"Did you see the lawyer?" he asked in a hopeful voice. Phoenix dropped her gaze.

"I... I did. I told her about what happened to Micah and how you're being accused of it." she said slowly. "But, she..." Worry flashed across Matty's face.

"She didn't...say no, did she?" he asked breathlessly. Phoenix sighed.

"I'm sorry. She said that there was nothing she could do."

Matty slumped in his chair. He sat in silence for a few seconds.

"So..." his voice was shaking, "S-so that's it, then." It was painful to listen to his defeated tone, and to watch as he accepted her answer. This was a kid, not even out of his teen years, being forced to accept his fate without any hope to defend himself. Phoenix couldn't stand it.

"... Not a chance." Matty's eyes flicked upward.

"W-what?" he mumbled, his eyes again shining with unshed tears.

"I'm taking your case myself." Phoenix said. "There's no way I'm letting it go now. Grossberg might not be able to help, but I'm not abandoning you here." A smile briefly tugged at one side of Matty's face, but faded.

"Y-you really shouldn't, Ms. Wright. Nobody will believe in me. It's not worth putting yourself-"

"Don't talk like that. You've just seen that I believe in you, and I'm not going to let you get framed for this." Phoenix said firmly. Matty stared down at the floor.

"... Alright. I trust you, Ms. Wright. Micah did, too." he said quietly. Phoenix smiled.

"That's what I like to hear. Now," she adjusted herself on the seat and leaned forward, "I need to ask you about a few things." Matty nodded. "First, why were you in the office yesterday?"

"Micah called my cell to ask about some work I'd been doing for him. It was connected to the blackmailing case he was working on," Matty said, "I offered to come to the office myself to show him what I'd found out." Phoenix looked aside thoughtfully.

"Did you record the call?" she asked.

"... One of us might have. You think it might help?"

"Wouldn't be the first time," Phoenix said, "Do you still have your cell phone?"

"No, that detective took it when I told her about our phone call." Matty said, hanging his head the tiniest bit.

"Hey," Phoenix said gently, "keep your head up. We need to stay confident here."

If not for the window separating them, she would have placed a hand on his shoulder, or anything else she could do to console him, but instead, she could only watch and hope her words were enough to keep Matty's spirits up. To find your brother dead, and to be locked away in prison, accused of his murder, Phoenix couldn't imagine how it would feel. Matty gave a heavy sigh.

"I'm sorry I can't be of much help to you, Ms. Wright." he said.

"You don't need to apologize for anything, just tell me what you can." Phoenix said consolingly. Another thought occurred to her, and she asked, "Why are you wearing that- er, robe thing?" Matty almost laughed at Phoenix's fumbling for words.

"It's part of my training." he said.

"For?"

"Micah and I are from a village a couple of hours from the city. The people there have been performing spiritual training for centuries."

"And by 'spiritual', you mean...?" Phoenix was becoming quite curious; Micah had never told her about his past beyond the start of his law career.

"Oh, it's nothing weird," Matty assured her, "We're spirit mediums; we can channel the spirits of the dead into our bodies to let them temporarily visit the living world." Phoenix stared.

"Er, no offense, Matty, but I think that easily qualifies for 'weird'. Honestly, it might even transcend weird and go all the way to 'bizarre'." she said. Matty really did laugh this time.

"Heh, I guess you've got a point. I'm just used to the idea, since I grew up in the village." he said with a significantly more upbeat tone.

"... Hold on..." Phoenix suddenly muttered, "...if you can do that, could you 'channel' Micah?"

Matty's face fell. "I've thought of that. The channeling technique is really powerful in the village's women, but men have to train a lot more to develop it properly. I tried to summon Mic in my cell, but-"

"It's OK." Phoenix cut in. "We'll manage without it." (_Knew it couldn't be that easy),_ she added in her head.

She was having difficulty taking in this information about Micah. She had never suspected that he had this sort of heritage, and it only compounded the injustice of his murder.

"Let's back up a step. What was the work you had been doing for Micah?" she asked.

"Like I said, it was connected to his blackmailing case. He sent me a folder full of letters a little while ago. They had been sent to all kinds of people, but none of them were signed, and the police couldn't find any evidence of who they were sent by, so Micah got me to dig through old court records and case files, to see if I could match up any names with the targets." Matty explained.

"What was Micah doing for the case at the time?" Phoenix asked, intrigued.

"Last I checked, he was putting together a file of all the people connected to the investigation, with all the information he could gather about them in it."

Phoenix set an elbow on the counter, leaning her head on her hand in thought.

"The file that Micah sent me to the precinct to get yesterday was about Mrs. Grossberg," she said, "Wait...when I talked to Grossberg, she looked like she would've been happy to take your case until I mentioned the blackmail case..."

"You think she might've had some connection to the case?" Matty inquired, now looking intrigued himself. "Something that scared her away?"

"Seems like Micah thought so, so it's definitely a possibility. I'll need to have another talk with her about it." Phoenix responded, still deep in thought.

They continued their interview for a short while longer, before Matty asked,

"Ms. Wright, are you gonna come back again today?"

"Of course." she said, smiling. "There's still plenty of time before the trial, so we've got time to talk some more." Matty returned the smile.

"Thanks. Do you think you could find that detective and get my cell phone back? If I really did record that message...I 'd like to be able to hear Micah's voice again."

"Sure. They must be done with it by now." Phoenix said, nodding. She turned and left the building, feeling reassured, but still uncertain about Matty's emotional state.

_Poor kid's still got a ways to go._

**September 6th, 11:32 AM**

**Fey & Co. Law Offices**

The office seemed oddly vacant for a crime scene. Phoenix had passed by one detective allegedly performing an inspection of the lobby's bookshelves, but from what she had seen, it looked more as if he was catching up on tabloid news. She stopped at the open office door. A small barrier stood just inside the door, making a rather pitiful attempt at blocking access.

"Detective Gumshoe?" she called into the seemingly empty room. The detective in question backed out of Micah's office, looking toward her.

"Oh, Ms. Wright. What'cha need?" she asked.

"I was hoping you could answer some questions about the case." Phoenix replied, unnecessarily leaning over the barrier.

"Not unless you're that kid's lawyer." Gumshoe said, glaring skeptically.

"I've taken Matty's case." Phoenix confirmed. Gumshoe watched her for another moment.

"Alright. That makes you qualified to poke around in here. I'll answer your questions, too." she said. Phoenix stepped around the barrier and entered the office. Gumshoe was looking at her with something resembling pity. "I'm sorry to say it, but it really doesn't look like you've got any chance in tomorrow's trial." she said.

"What's got you convinced of that?" Phoenix asked as she stooped to examine the floor.

"Buncha stuff." Gumshoe said.

"Quite a professional answer, Detective." Phoenix chided, now inspecting the apparent murder weapon.

"For instance, we've got our witness, the fella from the hotel across the way, then there's all the evidence,"

"What evidence?" Phoenix cut in. "You're saying you've actually found something to tie Matty to the murder?" Gumshoe faltered.

"Well... no." she said, "The only prints on the murder weapon were the victim's, and we didn't find any traces of anything left behind by your client, but..."

"So, you're saying that your only point against him is that witness?" Phoenix asked.

"Not quite," Gumshoe said, her confidence apparently returning, "we've also got the kid's cell phone, which had a recorded call from just before murder. He was comin' over here to the office right after the call, which puts him here right on time for the murder." Phoenix tilted her head quizzically.

"What makes you think Matty would have any reason to kill his brother?" she asked. Gumshoe seemed to fumble for an answer again.

"We, uh...we don't have the motive down yet, either." she admitted, looking slightly embarrassed.

"Not really making yourself look better here, Detective." Phoenix remarked.

"Well, here's the most important part!" Gumshoe blurted, still intent on saving face. "Y'know who's gonna be prosecutin' this case?" she inquired, clearly quite excited to answer the question herself.

"No." Phoenix said plainly, resuming her inspection of the bloodstained hammer. Gumshoe chuckled.

"You're gonna be goin' up against Prosecutor Edgeworth." she said triumphantly. Phoenix froze completely.

"E-Edgeworth?" she stammered.

"Yep! The one and only-"

"Merle Edgeworth." she and Phoenix said at the same time.

Gumshoe gave Phoenix an odd look, and asked, "Hold on, do you...know Ms. Edgeworth?"

"I-..." Phoenix's mind was in complete disarray at the news. She couldn't seem to string the right words together to form an answer. "Y-you could say that..." she managed, trying to return her focus to the crime scene.

"Huh. Well, you'll know her reputation then." Gumshoe said, sounding surprised.

"Of course," Phoenix said thickly, her mind still dazed, "she's a terrifying prosecutor who's never lost a case. She'll do anything in her power to get the guilty verdict, no matter how far she-"

"Aw, c'mon, don't make her sound heartless, Ms. Wright." Gumshoe interrupted her. Phoenix turned away.

After a moment's silence, she asked, "Have you got an autopsy report yet?" she wanted to avoid going any further in discussing her connection to the prosecutor.

"Er, yeah. I s'pose you oughta have a copy to look over." Gumshoe said, sounding reluctant to change the subject. She picked up a small box from the jumbled mess of police equipment that had been set up in the corner of the room, and extracted an envelope. "Here ya go." she said, handing it over to Phoenix.

After Phoenix had spent a minute scanning through the report, she looked up at Gumshoe again.

"Say, do you happen to have Matty's cell phone? He told me that you took it while he was in questioning." she said.

"Right here," Gumshoe replied, removing the phone in question from the box. "I guess it's alright for me to give it to you." she said, offering it to Phoenix. After pocketing it, Phoenix stood in silence, wondering if there was anything else worth asking about. Gumshoe, meanwhile, had returned to her inspection of the side office. "Anything else, Ms. Wright?" she asked over her shoulder.

"... No, I'll be going." Phoenix said, turning around.

"Oh, one last thing I've gotta say first!" Gumshoe called. "I'd better not hear anything about you talkin' to the witness!" Phoenix didn't respond, stepping around the barrier and leaving the office. She passed by the detective from earlier on the stairs, and he gave her an odd look as she reread the autopsy report.

-_Time of Death: 9/5 at roughly 11 AM, likely several minutes prior. Cause of Death: Dual blunt force trauma to back of the head. Death was instantaneous after second blow.-_

Phoenix shuddered; the report brought horrific images back into her head, and she remembered the exact feelings that had been stirred by the sight of Micah's body. She dropped the report onto the passenger's seat of her car, driving once again toward the detention centre.

**September 6th, 12:07 PM**

**Detention Centre**

**Visitor's Room**

"Back again, Ms. Wright?" the guard asked, barely moving from his post at the door. "Mr. Fey's just at lunch, he'll be a few minutes." Phoenix sat down as the case's details ran through her head for the tenth time since her talk with Gumshoe.

(There's no clear evidence against Matty, so all I'll need to focus on at first is debunking their witness' testimony. I guess I'd better go and see if I can find the guy today, while I've got the chance; knowing Edgeworth, she'll already have talked to him plenty. Then, there's still whatever it is that stopped Grossberg from taking Matty's case-)

Phoenix halted her thought process for a moment, letting out a sigh. This wasn't the kind of thing she would have considered jumping straight into just a day or two ago. She'd been perfectly happy to assist Micah in whatever he had been working on, learning from his behaviour and developing her own skills gradually, but here she was today, thrown right into the middle of a web of different leads, completely unsure about which to follow first.

(I only have today to track down whatever I can. Edgeworth'll already be miles ahead of me, so something has to take priority._)_

"Hi, Ms. Wright." came Matty's voice from the window. Phoenix jolted out of her thoughts and moved to the chair in front of Matty. He seemed to be in better spirits than he had been earlier, as he managed a small smile as he looked through the glass at her.

"Hey," Phoenix said, taking Matty's phone out of her pocket. Matty brightened as Phoenix held it up to the window. "Turns out that you did record the call," she said.

"Go ahead and play it." Matty said quietly, and Phoenix did so.

"_Micah?_" came Matty's voice from the speaker.

"_Hey, Matty. How're things going?_" Micah's voice asked back. Phoenix closely watched Matty's face as he listened intently to the recording.

"_Pretty well. I think I'll be able to strike a deal with the landlord by tomorrow, so I should be moved in within the next few days._"

_So, he's been looking for an apartment, _Phoenix thought to herself.

"_That's great._" Micah answered, "_You made any progress with those old letters I sent you?"_

"_One of 'em, yeah. It's a bit too much to talk about over the phone, though._" Phoenix noticed Matty's eyes beginning to glisten with tears, and she again inwardly cursed the window separating them. "_Hey, why don't I come over to the office and show you what I've got personally?_"

"_Alright, sure. Come on over. You can finally meet my student, too._" Phoenix jerked.

"_That's...the Wright lady, right?_"

"_Yep, the one I told you about. You should have seen her first trial; it was incredible, the way she caught on to the real criminal, and-_"

"_Save it 'til I get there, alright?_" Matty cut in, sounding as if he was about to laugh. "_I doubt Ms. Wright would mind hearing you talk about it like that herself._" Phoenix felt a mixture of embarrassment and sadness at this exchange. It was wonderful to know how proud Micah had been of her after her first trial, but it only added to the growing emotional weight of his death.

"_Alright, Matty. Talk to you when you get here._"

"_I'll be there in a few minutes. Bye!_"

With a quiet tone, the message ended. Matty was again hunched over the table, his tears falling unrestrainedly.

"Matty..." Phoenix said gently. He looked up. Phoenix had placed her palm against the window. She gave him a meaningful look, and he understood. He lifted a shaking hand and pressed it flat against the window, matching Phoenix's.

(It'll have to do.)

It took Matty a short while to regain his composure.

"Th-thanks, Ms. Wright. Thanks for everything. Is there anything else you need to know?"

"Don't thank me yet, Matty. We've still got plenty of work to go." Phoenix said. She thought for a moment, and remembered another question she had meant to ask. "Do you have any other living family?"

Matty shook his head. "Micah was all I had left. He's taken care of me for years. I don't know what happened to her, but my mother vanished when I was really young, and...there was an incident, a long time ago, and my father vanished too, as a result."

Phoenix stared in disbelief. It was near impossible to imagine living Matty's life. He wasn't even out of his teen years, yet he had lost his entire immediate family, and now found himself in prison, at risk of facing the death penalty. In spite of the little time that remained, she felt compelled to continue speaking with him, if only to give him some company and keep him from being sent back to his cell.

"I know it's none of my business, but what was the incident that your father was involved in?" she asked.

"It's fine, Ms. Wright. It was a court case, actually. If I remember right from the last time Micah talked about it, a defense attorney was killed fourteen years ago, and the police couldn't find anything to track down the murderer. They were getting desperate, so they decided to consult a spirit medium to help find an answer." Matty said in a strangely detached tone.

"Your father?" Phoenix guessed. Matty nodded.

"Milo Fey. He had taken over as the head of the channeling school when my mother vanished, so the police figured that he would be the best option. He channeled the attorney, and the spirit told the police who the murderer had been. So, they arrested the person that was accused and brought them to court, but they got off with a not guilty verdict. Then, the media somehow found out about the police using my father in the investigation, and he was accused of being a fraud. The channeling school's reputation was ruined, and my father vanished."

Phoenix was again left stunned, and she began to wonder if there could possibly be anything worse buried in Matty's family history. The way he spoke about it only made it all the more painful to hear; he spoke distantly, as if he had given up all hope of having his life back.

"I... that's all, Matty." she mumbled.

"OK. I guess I'll see you at the trial tomorrow, then?" Matty said, still in the same detached tone.

"Right..." Phoenix said, standing up.

**September 6th, 1:24 PM**

**Gatewater Hotel**

Phoenix glanced around. The hotel's hallway was completely vacant. As far as she could tell, this was the room that the man she had seen from the office was staying in. She hesitated briefly, but knocked on the door all the same. After a few seconds of silence, the door opened. Indeed, there stood the man from the previous day.

"Can I help you?" he asked genially.

"Er, sorry to bother you. My name is Phoenix Wright. I'm a defense lawyer." Phoenix said, offering a hand.

"Ooh, fascinating!" the man said loudly, vigourously shaking her hand. He stopped suddenly, tilting his head slightly and staring at her. "Hold on, I think I recognize you. You're the woman I saw yesterday, who discovered that horrible murder scene in the office across the road, yes?"

"That's right," Phoenix said, lightly tugging her hand away, as the man had not yet released it. "you'll be the witness that the police interviewed, then?"

"Yes, yes, Angelo May is my name. Quite a shocking sight it was, dear lady. As if it wasn't enough that a boy beat that man to death in broad daylight, the police told me afterward that the two were brothers!"

"So, you say that you saw the younger one attacking the older one?" Phoenix asked.

"Yes, indeed. Nasty attack, it was. He went at him with a hammer, and-" he broke off, giving a noticeable shudder. "My apologies, it's just very difficult to think about."

**(This** guy is the prosecution's key witness?)

Phoenix felt slightly better about her chances in the trial.

"I'm sorry, but I need to leave my room for a moment. By all means, sit down, if you'd like. I'd be glad to talk to you about the event once I return.." Angelo said, slipping past Phoenix and out the door.

Phoenix slowly entered the hotel room and cast a glance around. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, but her attention was caught by a drawer in the dresser, which was halfway opened. She walked over and took a quick look inside. the was a crumpled receipt, which she unfolded. It appeared that Angelo had bought a cheap video camera the week before. Her curiosity was piqued, and she opened the other drawers. Oddly, the video camera did not seem to be in any of them, but she gasped as she opened the last drawer. Inside was a familiar toolbox, stamped with "Property of Micah Fey".

"How in the-" Phoenix took the box out the drawer and placed it in her bag. Micah had been searching for his tools shortly before he was murdered, and here they were, in the hotel room of someone that neither of them had ever even heard of until today. Figuring it would be best to leave before Mr. May realized what she had found, Phoenix rushed out of the hotel room and toward the stairs in the opposite direction. Once she had exited the hotel, she ran across the road and back into the office. To her surprise and relief, Detective Gumshoe was not in the building. She entered Micah's personal office and began to stare around, looking for anything Micah might have been working on that would require the use of his toolbox. The only thing that showed any sign of disrepair was the desk lamp, which was lying on its side, unplugged. She quickly inspected it, and found there to be several screws that appeared to have been removed and replaced fairly recently. She opened Micah's toolbox and set to work removing the screws. Once the lamp was open, she let out a small chuckle. Loosely taped to the inside of the lamp's case, right next to a carefully drilled hole, was a small camera. Several wires had been cut out to allow room for it.

(Exactly what I needed to find out.)

Phoenix took a few pictures of the lamp and camera with her phone, before carefully replacing the screws. She had a feeling that this discovery would be a great help in tomorrow's trial.

* * *

_Oooh, I tried to write something intriguing~_

_Your call as to whether it worked or not, I guess. I apologize for the gaps between updates; my work ethic hasn't really been top of the line as of late. Anyway, here's that important question I talked about last chapter:_

_What should Matty take to calling Phoenix after this case? "Nick" doesn't seem fitting, and Lexine only called her by her full first name. I'm terrible with clever nicknames, so I'd appreciate any suggestions. Feel free to leave them in a review, or to PM them to me. Perhaps "Boss", like Phoenix called Micah? I really could use help on this._

_Like you all know, feedback is appreciated._

_-SUNSTON_


	5. Turnabout Brothers

**September 7th, 9:54 AM**

**District Court**

**Defendant Lobby No. 2**

"Matty, are you gonna be alright today? You look like you didn't sleep at all last night." Phoenix asked, concerned. There were dark circles under Matty's eyes and his movement was slow. Phoenix, on the other hand, had slept comfortably through the night. The evidence she had tracked down was more than enough to restore her confidence in their chances in the trial, but Matty looked barely conscious.

"I'm fine, Ms. Wright." he said, but his tone didn't match the claim at all. It was clear that he was still skeptical about their chances, which Phoenix supposed had kept him up overnight. She patted his shoulder.

"You don't need to worry. I'm ready for this, believe me." she said. Matty gave a forced smile before slumping back on the bench.

"Did you find anything else yesterday?" he asked quietly as Phoenix sat down next to him.

"Oh, you'd better believe I did." Phoenix said, smiling. "That witness doesn't have half a chance."

Matty's eyes brightened very slightly, but he still looked downcast.

"There's not much time before the trial starts. We'd better get into the courtroom." Phoenix said, resting her hand back on Matty's shoulder. He reluctantly stood up with her, and Phoenix realized that his entire body was shaking. "Matty... " she mumbled. She felt a sudden compulsion to put her arms around him and just hold him for as long as he needed it, but Matty began to walk solemnly toward the doors in silence before she had any opportunity.

**September 7th, 10:00 AM**

**District Court**

**Courtroom No. 2**

The courtroom was, as always, filled with the incessant buzz of mixed conversations from the gallery. Phoenix stood behind the defense bench, giving her best effort not to betray any look of fear or uncertainty. Across the room was a face that she distantly recognized, warped by fifteen years of age and a cold and intimidating stare. This was, of course, the face of Prosecutor Merle Edgeworth, who was staring intensely at Phoenix, her expression unreadable. She wore a finely tailored navy suit with a thin cravat tied around her neck, and a knee-length maroon skirt. Her hair was an extremely light shade of brown, closer in appearance to a natural grey, hanging neatly down to her shoulders. Her appearance held a natural sense of imposing intelligence and intimidation.

At the sound of the gavel, a hush fell over the courtroom.

"-ahem- Court is now in session for the trial of Mr. Matty Fey." the judge rumbled, glancing around the room.

"The prosecution is ready, Your Honour." Edgeworth's voice was calm, keeping perfectly level.

"The defense is ready, Your Honour." Phoenix said, managing to keep her tone natural as well.

"Very well. Ms. Edgeworth, your opening statement, if you please." the judge said.

With a curt nod of response, Edgeworth drew a paper from beneath the table and read, "On the morning of September 5th, Mr. Matty Fey received a phone call from his brother, Micah Fey. In the conversation that followed, the defendant and the victim agreed to meet in the victim's law office. The defendant arrived shortly before 11 AM, and upon his arrival, he attacked and killed the victim, as was reported by the lead witness." she set down the paper and drew forth a satchel. "I present to the court the murder weapon: a small steel hammer, found to have been taken from the victim's personal storage closet." she said as she held up a sealed bag containing the stained hammer from the office.

"The court accepts this into evidence." the judge said. "Now, I believe you have a number of witnesses to call?"

Edgeworth repeated her curt nod. "Indeed, Your Honour. First, I would like to call the head detective on the case."

The doors opened, and Detective Gumshoe strolled in. Oddly, she still carried the book that she had been writing in at the precinct. She took the stand, impatiently glancing around the courtroom.

"Please state your name and occupation." Edgeworth said sharply.

"Name's Debra Gumshoe. I'm the homicide detective placed in charge of this case." Gumshoe said.

The judge nodded. "Please describe the case to the court, Detective. Ms. Wright, you may, of course, question the witness as needed."

"Got it." Gumshoe said. For a moment, Phoenix was certain that Edgeworth was again staring directly at her, but when she looked, the prosecutor's eyes were drifting lazily around the courtroom, as if she expected no surprises from the proceedings.

Gumshoe cleared her throat. "I've got a floor map of the office right here. The victim's body was found in the centre of the room, face down. The murder weapon, a steel hammer, was found a few feet away."

Phoenix leaned to one side. (Nothing seems off so far.._.)_

"The only fingerprints that we could find on the weapon were the victim's, but we found Mr. Matty Fey at the scene right after the 9-11 call came in. He and Ms. Wright were the only two people there." Gumshoe said. "Well, the only living ones, anyway." she added after a pause.

The judge's eyebrows raised. "You say that Ms. Wright was at the scene? Why, then, has she been cleared of suspicion?" he asked.

"The autopsy showed that the victim died a few minutes before 11. I can confirm that I was talking to Ms. Wright down at the precinct at exactly that time." Gumshoe explained, idly flipping through her records book. The judge still seemed curious.

"What reason did Ms. Wright have to visit the precinct?" he asked, glancing between Phoenix and Gumshoe.

"Objection!"

Phoenix spun around, staring at Edgeworth. The prosecutor had shouted with a shocking amount of force for someone who had been so reserved up to this point.

"That has no relation to the case at hand, Your Honour." she said, returning to her previous calm state. It was jarring, the way that her demeanour could change so rapidly.

The judge considered this. "Very well. If Ms. Wright has already been cleared of suspicion, I suppose you're right. Proceed with the testimony, witness."

(She seemed awfully quick to catch that one,) Phoenix mused, watching Edgeworth closely.

"Anyway, we arrested Mr. Fey shortly after we arrived. The evidence pointed to him, after all." Gumshoe said.

(There it is.) "Hold it!" Phoenix shouted, suddenly filled with an energy precisely like what she felt in her first trial. Gumshoe looked at her with mild impatience. "Detective, all you've told us so far is that Matty was at the scene. There hasn't been any evidence to draw even a small connection between him and the murder!"

Gumshoe groaned. "C'mon, Ms. Wright, I told you this already. It's not me that's gonna prove that he he did it... "

Edgeworth scoffed. "I think it's time we let Detective Gumshoe take a break, Your Honour."

"That seems like the best option for Ms. Wright's questioning. Ms. Edgeworth, please call your next witness." the judge said.

"The prosecution calls Mr. Angelo May to the stand." Edgeworth said, her gaze beginning to drift again. Phoenix watched Gumshoe slouch out of the room, passing by Angelo in the doorway. Angelo walked with an exaggerated sort of pride, glancing around the courtroom and casting an eerily bright smile toward the gallery. He took the stand, his chest puffed out significantly. "Your name and profession, witness." It was almost irritating, the way that Edgeworth seemed only passingly interested in the trial.

"Angelo May, good lady. I am a secretariat at the Bluecorp Information Agency." Angelo answered loudly, projecting his voice to the entire courtroom. Phoenix sunk her face into the palm of her hand.

(Oh, good. He's like this **all **the time.)

"Tell us what you saw, then, Mr. May." the judge said.

"Certainly." Angelo cleared his throat loudly, "I was at the Gatewater Hotel, sitting in my room, just before 11. It was a coincidence, really, that I happened to look out the window."

"Hold it!" Phoenix didn't really have an issue with Angelo's statement, but his excessively upright speech pattern was already beginning to annoy her. "Are you... sure that you didn't have any other reason for looking out the window at that time?" she asked.

"I suppose I can understand why you'd be curious, Ms. Wright. After all, the hotel isn't really in a very interesting end of town." Angelo said, turning his overly bright smile toward her. "It's quite a coincidence, but that's really all there is to it. The right move at the right time, as it were."

Phoenix sat back and motioned for Angelo to continue. His overly formal mannerisms were impressively grating at length, and it seemed that asking pointless questions wasn't going to help.

"Now, as I looked out the window, the office across the way caught my eye. A young man, the defendant, was standing there, a weapon raised over his head! As the poor victim stepped out of the side room, the young man swung the weapon down onto his head! The older man dropped to the ground, and the younger one abandoned the scene. I, of course, called the police. Immediately after my call, the younger man re-entered the office, rushing to the victim's side. I suppose he must have left to wash his hands, considering the horrible mess he made when he attacked the victim." Angelo finished his statement by looking around the courtroom, still flashing that alarmingly wide smile. Phoenix looked at him in slight disbelief. He caught her gaze and gave an irritating nod.

(How can Edgeworth be making it this easy for me_?)_

"Objection!" Phoenix finally shouted after a healthy pause. She was glad to see the grin starting to fade from Angelo's face as he stared at her. "Mr. May, that statement was full of more holes than I could possibly have imagined." she said.

"Oh, do tell." Angelo replied, watching her suspiciously.

"First off, you claimed that Matty hit the victim once before he escaped, right?" Phoenix inquired, glancing between Angelo and Edgeworth.

"That's right." Angelo answered with a theatrical nod.

"But that must be wrong. The autopsy report quite clearly states that the victim was struck twice, after all."

Angelo's face twitched. "Is that so?" he asked.

"Indeed it is. Secondly, you claimed that the murder caused quite a mess. Again, that seems wrong. When I arrived on the scene just a few minutes after, Matty's clothes were completely clean."

Angelo twitched again. "Ms. Lawyer, do you suspect that I'm lying?"

"That seems like the best guess, Mr. May." Phoenix said, her eyes narrowed. "Thirdly, you theorized that Matty left the scene to wash his hands. If he had to do that, he would also have needed to remove his fingerprints from the weapon."

"Perhaps he did!" Angelo exclaimed, returning to his upright posture and expression, "He must have taken the weapon with him and returned it to the scene just before you arrived!"

Phoenix shook her head, smirking. "I'm afraid not, Mr. May. There were bloodstains and fingerprints on the weapon, but only the victim's." she said. Angelo faltered, no doubt trying to think up another explanation. Phoenix looked over at Edgeworth. She froze, noticing the prosecutor's expression; Edgeworth's lip was curled upward very slightly, as is she were only amused by Phoenix's questioning.

(What's she up to over there?)

"Objection!" Angelo's muttering stopped as Edgeworth shouted. She gave a condescending shake of her head. "Your Honour, I must apologize for my witness's behaviour. Surely you understand, his memory of the event must be slightly hazy. It must have been a great shock to see such a vile attack, after all."

The judge looked at Angelo. "He certainly does seem rather off-put. I suppose we can forgive these lapses in memory." he said, leaning back in his chair.

Phoenix groaned. (**Not** what I needed right now. Edgeworth's already got the judge on Mr. May's side...)

"Mr. May, feel free to resume your testimony as soon as you are ready."

"Not at all, Judge, not at all!" Angelo exclaimed, his composure restored. "I too must apologize for that travesty of a testimony. I must have recalled some of the facts wrong."

(More like you made them up...)

"Now then, after the defendant returned to the scene, he dropped down next to his victim. I suppose he was setting himself up to look like the corpse's discoverer, rather than its maker. A minute or so later, the lovely Ms. Lawyer arrived on the scene, followed shortly by the police. That was when I stopped watching the building." Angelo said, standing upright again and addressing the entire courtroom. Phoenix slumped.

(There's... there's nothing that I can use in that testimony...)

"Ms. Wright?" the judge began, seeing her blank expression. "Ms. Wright, are you going to continue your cross-examination?" Phoenix could feel the sweat forming on her neck.

"I-... " _(_I have to think of something.._.) "_... Yes, Your Honour. Although, I have a question for the prosecution, first." she said, straightening. Edgeworth's eyes narrowed. Phoenix attempted to look relaxed, but it was a serious effort. "Ms. Edgeworth, your witness claims that my client did all of these things, but something's been bothering me this whole time. Have you established any motive behind this murder? You must know that the defendant and the victim were brothers, so what reason could Matty have possibly had to kill the victim?"

Edgeworth's expression hardened. "I must admit to the court that we were, in fact, unable to find any such motive. The only record of interaction between the victim and his brother that we were able to locate was a recorded message present on both of their cell phones. The recording was of a phone call between the two of them from a short time before the murder."

"And there was nothing incriminating in this recording?" Phoenix asked. She couldn't think of anything herself that would have thrown suspicion onto Matty, but she expected Edgeworth to piece something together.

"Perhaps it would be best if we were to play the recording for the court?" Edgeworth suggested.

"That does seem like the best option." the judge agreed, "Ms. Wright, I believe it was you that submitted a cell phone as evidence this morning?"

Phoenix nodded, "That's right, Your Honour." she drew Matty's cell phone from her bag as the bailiff rushed over to retrieve it.

After the recording had finished, Edgeworth was smirking again. "As you can see, Your Honour, this call places Mr. Fey in his brother's office right on time for the murder."

Phoenix was sweating again. (I thought she might try for that angle_.) _"Objection!" she shouted, "We don't have a definite time for the victim's death! For all we know, he could have been killed the instant he set the phone down!"

Edgeworth gave what was perhaps the most elegant shrug Phoenix had ever seen before responding with, "You have a point. I think we should consult the witness. Mr. May, did you, by any chance, happen to see the victim on the phone before the murder?"

Angelo looked mildly annoyed at having to speak again, but said, "Now that you mention it, Ms. Prosecutor, I believe I do remember that."

Edgeworth's smirk froze. "... What? You... you must have misunderstood me-"

"I don't believe I did, Ms. Prosecutor. I do recall seeing the man on the phone a short while before the murder occurred."

"W-what!?" Edgeworth suddenly looked shaken; this didn't appear to be part of her plan. Phoenix was uncertain as to whether or not she should interrupt.

"Please, do testify about this, witness! This is a vital piece of information!" the judge said, attentively watching Angelo.

"Certainly, Judge. It was about a half-hour before the murder, actually. As I was drinking my coffee by the window, I took a moment to watch the scenery. The victim was pacing around his office with a cell phone to his ear. He was searching quite intently for something, by the look of it."

Something clicked in Phoenix's mind. _(_He must be talking about when Micah called me. That was when he was looking for his tools_-_) she froze. Until now, she hadn't seen any opportunity to bring up her discovery from Angelo's hotel room.

"Hold it!" she yelled. Angelo broke off and turned to her. "Witness, you said that the victim was searching for something in his office, right?"

"Indeed. He seemed quite determined." Angelo said.

(Hope this works...) "Do you have any idea what he might have been searching for?"

"Objection!" Edgeworth shouted. "How can you expect the witness to know that, Wright? He was across a city street!"

"Relax, Ms. Prosecutor." Angelo said, waving a hand dismissively. "Ms. Lawyer's just forgetting things. The victim said it over the phone, after all. He was looking for his tools-"

"Ob-objection-!" Edgeworth shouted again, her voice failing. Phoenix crossed her arms smugly, enjoying her own opportunity to smirk at her opponent.

"I suppose you didn't want the court to hear that last part, Edgeworth?" she asked lightly, as the prosecutor gripped her bench for support.  
"What are you talking about?" Angelo asked, a flicker of panic in his eyes.

"Thanks for not lying about anything this time around, witness." Phoenix replied. "It makes everything much simpler." she turned to address the judge, "Mr. May did, in fact, hear the victim talking about his search for his missing tools. The phone call that he's just testified about was between myself and the victim, and he mentioned it during the call."

The judge looked thoughtful. "... Wait, that's a different call from the one that was played for the court, isn't it? The victim didn't say anything about it when he spoke to the defendant... "

"Exactly. If you check the record, there's another piece of evidence I submitted this morning. I think it's time we brought it to everyone's attention." Phoenix said, glancing toward Edgeworth, who appeared to be nearing a state of panic. She opened her bag and drew out the stack of photos she had taken the previous day. The bailiff again rushed over to take them. "As you can see from these photos, Your Honour, I found a certain device planted in the victim's office."

The judge's eyes widened as he examined the photos. "Ah, I know what this is!" he exclaimed, sounding rather pleased with himself, "This is one of those newfangled table lamps, isn't it?"

Phoenix dropped her confident posture, resisting an urge to groan loudly. "Er... Your Honour, I was referring more to the camera strapped to the inside of the lamp... "

"Oh! Of course! I'm terribly behind the times with all the fancy new devices these days." the judge said.

(Should this guy really be handing out verdicts?)

"Right... Now, I found this camera inside the victim's desk lamp, which wasn't working; as you can see in the photos, the wires were cut out to make room for the camera." Phoenix explained, "The camera itself is a type that can wirelessly transmit live footage to a receiver within a certain distance. This, I suspect, is how Mr. May was able to hear about the victim's missing tools."

"Objection!" Edgeworth shouted again, clearly determined to regain her earlier ground. "You have no proof that the witness planted it there! Anybody within the signal's effective radius could have done it!"

Phoenix shook her head, staring determinedly back across the courtroom. "I'm afraid I do, Edgeworth. I paid your witness a quick visit myself yesterday. In his hotel room, I found quite a number of interesting things."

Edgeworth slammed a fist down on her bench. "And what were these things, Wright?" she demanded, hunching over slightly.

"I submitted them as evidence this morning, as well. First, a receipt from a small hardware store downtown. This receipt, naturally, recorded the purchase of a small camera and receiver."

"Wh-... Objection!" the prosecutor's patience was rapidly degrading. "That could easily be a coincidence!"

"Objection!" Phoenix yelled back, "I think not, Edgeworth, considering what else I found there! The next item was a small toolbox; quite a familiar one, actually."

"You can't be serious... " Edgeworth was fuming.

"I think you've got it, Edgeworth. Would you like to see the name stamped onto the front of this toolbox?"

"Nnngh... hnn... " Edgeworth couldn't manage a coherent answer.

"Here it is, then." Phoenix said, removing the toolbox from her bag and placing it on the bench.

"Property of Micah Fey... the victim!?" the judge was astonished.

Phoenix smugly nodded. "That's right, Your Honour. The victim couldn't find his tools for one simple reason: they had been stolen by none other than Mr. Angelo May!"

Angelo, who had been growing more and more nervous as the conversation progressed, let out a yell. Slumping onto the witness stand, he began to growl an incoherent string of angry threats.

"Your Honour?" Phoenix inquired, looking toward the judge, who looked aghast.

"M-Ms. Edgeworth! Have you brought a... a criminal here today to testify!?"

"It... would appear that way, Your Honour." Edgeworth said. Phoenix stared. Somehow, the prosecutor was back to her upright posture, her arms crossed impatiently. She spoke with her head bowed and her eyes closed. After a moment's tense silence, she said, "I'm impressed, Wright. But even after all this, I am a tad disappointed."

"W-what?" Phoenix stammered.

"You have certainly discredited my witness, I'll give you that. But you've reached the end of your rope." Opening her eyes, she glared intensely at Phoenix once again. "You have nothing that can prove Mr. May had anything to do with the murder itself!"

Phoenix flinched._ (_Ack! She's... she's right! But... I can't just let it end here!)

"That's right, isn't it!? You can't drag me into this at all!" Angelo snarled, his face livid.

"Is this correct, Ms. Wright?" the judge asked.

Phoenix felt beads of sweat beginning to run down her neck as she muttered, "I-... yes, Your Honour. I don't have anything... "

The gallery broke into chatter, and the judge struck his gavel.

"Enough!" he shouted as the voices died down, "As this trial stands, I cannot hand down my verdict. Bailiff, arrest Mr. May at once. Unless you have any other witnesses to call, Ms. Edgeworth, I will have to suspend the proceedings until tomorrow."

A hint of anger crossed Edgeworth's face, but she held her calm expression.

"I... I do not, Your Honour." she said.

"I see. Very well, I fully expect the defense and the prosecution to further their investigations in the mean time. This court is adjourned!"

**September 7th, 12:35 PM**

**District Court**

**Defendant Lobby No. 2**

"We're safe, Matty. For now, at least." Phoenix said as she sat down on the lobby's bench. Matty joined her.

"That was great, Ms. Wright! You totally saved me in there!" Matty's expression was unlike Phoenix had ever seen it. She felt an indescribable sort of happiness at finally seeing his bright smile. She chuckled.

"Don't thank me just yet. We've still got one more day to go."

"So... " Matty mumbled, thinking, "What happens with me now? Do I still have to go back to the detention centre?"

"Unfortunately, yeah. We're getting close, but I haven't gotten you off the hook just yet." Phoenix answered apologetically.

"I'm not worried, Ms. Wright. I know what Micah was talking about, now that I've seen you in action!" Matty said, still smiling widely. Phoenix blushed slightly.

"Er, thanks, Matty. I guess I'd better get moving, if I'm gonna figure this out by tomorrow." she said, standing up.

"Sure, Ms. Wright. I guess the bailiff will take me back to the centre, then?" Matty asked.

"That's right. I'll see you soon, Matty." Phoenix answered.

* * *

_Hey, kids! It's a super-late chapter! Not gonna go into a long-winded apology letter here, I'll just say that I'm sorry for how long this one took. There's no real reason beyond "I have a terrible work ethic". Even so, I hope you enjoyed the update._

_As you know, feedback is appreciated._


	6. The First Sight

**September 7th, 1:44 PM**

**Phoenix Wright's Apartment**

_(... Blackmail... Murder... DL-6...)_

These were just a few of the disconnected words that drifted through Phoenix's mind as she sat at her kitchen table, idly twirling a pen between her fingers. What was there left to find? Who could Edgeworth bring into the courtroom tomorrow? When the prosecutor had interrupted the judge before the DL-6 case file could be brought up, had there been a deeper meaning behind it? None of it made sense yet.

Phoenix stood up. There was clearly quite a lot of information she didn't have yet, and she wouldn't accomplish anything by just sitting in confusion.

(The Gatewater's my only lead for now.)

It was nearly impossible for Angelo to have killed Micah, but he had to be involved somehow, and there had to be evidence somewhere in his hotel room.

**September 7th, 2:01 PM**

**Gatewater Hotel**

Phoenix had expected a mob of police and detectives to be present in the hotel, but found only a half dozen or so pacing the hall outside of Angelo's hotel room.

"Thought you'd show up, Ms. Wright." Gumshoe barked from inside the room.

Phoenix shrugged. "You found anything yet?"

"I know what you're hopin' to hear. Yep, we found the remote receiver, alright." Gumshoe said.

"I'm guessing you don't really want to show it to me, right?"

Gumshoe frowned. "Well, that'd be best for the investigation, but since you're the kid's lawyer, I'm required to let you see it." She didn't sound enthusiastic.

"Perfect. Have you got it here, or is it under analysis?"

"Right here." Gumshoe answered, holding up a small device similar to a radio. "Didn't take much testing, that. It's only got May's fingerprints on it. There's an opening on it for a memory card or somethin'. Couldn't find the card anywhere, though; May must've gotten rid of it already."

"Thanks, Detective." Phoenix said.

"Before you ask, we haven't found anything else. Looks to me like that's the last of it." said another detective from the side of the room.

"Alright. I guess I'll get out of your way, then." Phoenix said, backing toward the door.

"Hold on a moment." said another voice. Phoenix turned, barely suppressing a gasp as she saw the speaker. Edgeworth was standing in the doorway, watching her. "Good afternoon, Wright."

"E-Edgeworth?" Phoenix stammered.

"I'm here to for the investigation. I'd like to commend you personally for your performance in the trial this morning." Edgeworth said, ignoring Phoenix's efforts at speaking.

"Er... thanks...?" Phoenix muttered, unsure.

"Now then, I've no further interest in speaking to you. You may go." Edgeworth said sharply, stepping aside. Phoenix left the hotel room quickly. It was rather hard for her to tell whether or not Edgeworth was actually being hostile toward her.

She sat down on a bench just outside the hotel.

_What's next...? _she wondered. She had hoped that the receiver would help her find an answer to some of her questions, but instead, it only raised another: what happened to the memory card? If it was important enough for Angelo to remove it from the hotel entirely after recording Micah's phone calls, then there must have been some sort of clue about the real perpetrator on it. There was a small worry in her mind that Angelo might have destroyed the tape entirely before the trial even began, but she tried to force it from her mind. She needed to be confident that she would be able to find the truth, after all. Thinking over the facts again, she remembered her plan to talk to Mrs. Grossberg again. So, returning to her car, she set off for the stately office again.

**September 7th, 2:22 PM**

**Grossberg Law Offices**

"Yes, Mrs. Grossberg is in." the secretary answered, sending Phoenix toward the elevators. The rattling platform stopped on the fourth floor, and Phoenix stepped out. Grossberg again answered the door promptly, a sombre look on her face.

"Hello again, Ms. Wright." she said, stepping aside for Phoenix to enter the office.

"Hello, Mrs. Grossberg." Phoenix said.

"Please, sit down." Grossberg said. Phoenix did so. "I can't say I'm surprised that you're here. I saw you in the trial this morning." Grossberg again sat in the armchair across from Phoenix. "You've got a real passion for your work, I can see how well Micah taught you."

"I'm... th-thank you, Mrs. Grossberg." Phoenix said shakily, watching the veteran attorney's face. There was a deep sadness in her eyes, the sort of look expected from someone who has seen entirely too much hardship for one lifetime.

"I suppose you still want to know why I didn't represent Matty myself, don't you?" Grossberg asked quietly, bowing her head. Phoenix didn't answer. "Ms. Wright, you told me that Micah was investigating a blackmailing case when he was killed. If that's the case, then the first thing you need to know is that I know exactly who killed Micah, and why." Phoenix stared. "But, as I said to you yesterday, for reasons well out of my control, I can't tell you. I am ashamed to be of so little assistance to you, and you cannot know how sorry I am for it."

"Mrs. Grossberg, please," Phoenix said, desperation flickering in the back of her mind, "There must be something you can tell me... anything about Micah's case, or the investigation..."

"... There is only one thing I can do, Ms. Wright." Grossberg stood up, walking to her desk. From a drawer, she drew two photographs. "Micah gave me these photos weeks ago. They are both pieces of evidence from a case many years ago."

She held up the two pictures. One was of a dark-haired man with a gentle smile on his face. The other was of a gaudily dressed woman with hair dyed a violent shade of purple.

"I can't afford to tell you who either of these people are, but I suspect that you'll be able to find someone who can." Grossberg said. Phoenix stared at her, perplexed. "I told you yesterday, Ms. Wright. I want nothing more than to help the both of you, but there's nothing more I can do, given the circumstances."

Phoenix had no idea what to think of Grossberg's words. It was clear to her that the veteran attorney meant everything she said, but she couldn't fathom what would cause Grossberg to approach the situation in the way that she did.

"Thank you, Mrs. Grossberg." she said after a lengthy pause. Taking the photographs, she asked, "Should I... go?"

"You don't have much time left. If there isn't anything else you need to ask me, then you should definitely get out there." Grossberg replied.

"Alright." Phoenix turned and left the office. As she paced back down the hallway, she stared at the two photographs. There was something very vaguely familiar about the man in the first, but she was fairly certain she had never met him. There was no such familiarity about the woman in the second.

She nodded to the secretary as she left the building and returned to her car.

"Where to...?" she mumbled, running the possibilities through her mind. _(_There must be someone related to this case that can tell me who these people are._..)_ Three possibilities sprung to mind. She could return to the detention centre and ask Matty, or, as unlikely as it was that she would get an answer, she could also ask Angelo there. Finally, there was Detective Gumshoe. If Micah had been working with her in his search for information on the blackmailing cases, it was quite possible that the detective might have an answer.

Something clicked in her head. (I never read through the case file that Micah sent me to get- ... wait, it had Grossberg's name on it!)

She barely restrained a self-indulgent cheer at her deduction as she started the car and took off for the hotel.

**September 7th, 2:56 PM**

**Criminal Affairs Department**

Detective Gumshoe, as it would happen, was not at the hotel. Phoenix had checked in with the other officers still combing the building, but she was told that Gumshoe had returned to the precinct for one reason or another. So, her high spirits slightly dampened, Phoenix had returned to her car and traveled instead to the precinct.

"The... DL-6 file from the other day?" Gumshoe inquired, giving Phoenix a curious look.

"Yes, the one that I brought to Micah's office." Phoenix confirmed. "Did you take it back during the investigation, or it is still at the office?"

"I filed it away again after the initial search was over." Gumshoe answered. "D'you think you might still need it?" she asked, casting a glance toward the evidence room.

"Definitely. I'm almost certain that whatever Micah was investigating is crucial to this case."

Gumshoe gave her an odd look, but trudged off toward the evidence room all the same. She returned fairly quickly, the case file back in her hand.

"Well, there y'go. Not sure what good it'll do you, but you can take it."

"Thanks, Detective." Phoenix said. She paused as she was turning to leave. "How's today's investigation going?"

"Not too well, thanks to you." Gumshoe said, sounding annoyed. "If you hadn't wrecked that May guy's testimony, we'd already be finished here."

"Detective, shouldn't it be more important that you get past all the confusion to find the truth? Does it really matter how quickly you get the job done?" Phoenix asked, taken aback.

"All I'm sayin' is, not too many of Ms. Edgeworth's trials go on for more than one day, 'cuz she always works everything out right away. She doesn't waste time doubting the answer." Gumshoe said.

Phoenix was nonplussed. (Edgeworth... what happened to you...?)_  
_

"Anyway, let us know if you find anything out, would'ya? We're startin' to run outta time here." Gumshoe said, turning her attention back to the book she never seemed to be without. Before Phoenix could reply, Gumshoe turned and walked away.

**September 7th, 3:11 PM**

**Phoenix Wright's Apartment**

Phoenix dropped the folder onto the table and flipped it open. Inside was a disjointed mix of different photos and articles, some dating back nearly two decades. As she scanned over the uppermost article, the word "Fey" jumped out at her. She began reading from there, but quickly found that she would need to read the full document to make sense of it.

The article, a newspaper cutting, described some sort of scandal fifteen years prior. Halfway down the page, she paused.

(This sounds like the scandal that Matty told me about...)

On the side of the page was a picture of a man, identical to the one Grossberg has given her. The label beneath it read, "Milo Fey, 31".

(Matty's father...)

The rest of the article seemed unrelated to the Feys, and Phoenix shifted it aside. It seemed odd to her that such an article would be filed under Grossberg's name, and she began to scan through the others to find a connection. Another article, halfway down the stack, caught her eye. It was a police search warrant, dated for near the same time as the incident described in the first article.

_**DL-6 Invest.**_

_**Location: **__Grossberg Law Offices_

_**Head Detective: **__Detective Badd_

_**Reason for search: **__Suspicion of involvement in information leak_

_**Result: **__Indecisive_

Phoenix reread it in confusion. According to the first article, there had been a highly publicized leak of classified information about DL-6, which she remembered Matty mentioning, but_ Grossberg?_ The idea didn't match her impression of the attorney at all. If Grossberg had been responsible for the media finding out about the police consulting a spirit medium, why would she have later become Micah's mentor? Unless Grossberg had done it as an effort to make amends for the ruin of the Fey family, it didn't add up. Even then, what would Grossberg have had to gain for it in the first place? Surely, if she had been involved, the police would have found evidence of some sort.

None of it seemed to make sense. (Maybe... Maybe Matty knows something more about it.)

Resealing the folder, Phoenix returned to her car.

**September 7th, 3:44 PM**

**Detention Centre**

**Visitor's Room**

"Hey, Ms. Wright!" Matty said brightly. He didn't seem to have lost his cheery mood from the morning.

"Hey, Matty." Phoenix replied, sitting down. "I've got some evidence I need your advice on."

Matty raised an eyebrow. "Alright, let's see it." he said. Phoenix opened the folder, removing the

article and photos. She set the two photos in front of Matty first.

"That's my dad-!" Matty said in surprise. He looked up at Phoenix. "Where did you get that picture?"

"From Micah's old boss. She gave me both of these photos, but she said that she couldn't tell me who they were." Phoenix said. She slid the other photo forward, and Matty froze.

"That's..." he muttered, looking shocked.

"You know who it is?" Phoenix asked urgently.

"... only the last name. White. She was re-... well, Micah suspected, at least, that she was responsible for the scandal surrounding my dad. Micah told me that she runs an 'information agency', which basically means a private detective office. Mic's big blackmailing investigation was all about her. He suspected that White was blackmailing all kinds of people using hidden information, with her agency as a cover."

While she listened, something clicked in Phoenix's memory.

"Information Agency... that's what Mr. May said that he worked for in the trial this morning! Blue-something or other... Bluecorp!"

"D'you think White might have been involved?" Matty inquired.

"Seems like a good guess." Phoenix said. "Thanks a lot, Matty. I think this might be just what we need to get you out of here."

"I hope so. Get going, Ms. Wright, I'll see you tomorrow." Matty said.

"Bye, Matty."

**September 7th, 4:03 PM**

**Bluecorp Inc.**

**CEO's Office**

_(_This is the place..._)_

Phoenix slowly walked around the office. The decor was almost sickeningly vibrant. A massive trophy case was built into one of the walls, (which were all painted a glowing blue), with a vast array of plaques and cups lined up inside it. Bright lights lined the ceiling, and an enormously overdressed desk stood near the centre of the room, painted a bright gold.

"Hel-LO, there!" came a voice from behind her. "Wonderfully splendid to meet you, ma'am!"

Phoenix hesitantly turned to face the speaker.

"You _are_ the lawyer that the secretary told me about, yes?" asked the very woman from Grossberg's photo. She looked near identical to the photo, though her face was noticeably more lined with age.

"Er, yes... Phoenix Wright." Phoenix said, slowly offering a hand. The woman accepted the handshake with a vigour easily rivalling Angelo's.

"Phoenix Wright, excellent!" she said.

(I can see where Angelo gets it from...)

"I am, of course, Raine White, the CEO of this most spectacular corporation. Now then, Phoenix Wright, what is it that you require from me? Perhaps, an investigative request?"

"Something like that." Phoenix said.

(I'm gonna need to be careful of what I say to someone as... interesting... as Ms. White...)

She reached into her bag and drew out the photo of Milo Fey. As Raine looked down at it, an odd sort of glint very briefly flashed in her eye.

"And who is this?" she asked. It was clear from her tone that she already knew the answer.

"Milo Fey." Phoenix said. "But, you already knew that, didn't you?"

The glint reappeared for a brief moment. "I've no idea what you mean, Ms. Lawyer. I don't know any Feys."

"You must have heard about the trial earlier today, though. A boy named Matty Fey was put on trial for the murder of his brother, and a secretariat from this company was brought in as a witness." Phoenix said.

(What reasons could she have to play dumb about this...?)

"Ah... yes. That _was _what Angelo was up to today, wasn't it? I must confess that my knowledge about the trial itself is rather lacking." Raine said. Phoenix was about to speak, when Raine continued, "The look in your eyes tells me that you don't believe me, Ms. Lawyer. It's really not polite to dig into other people's business, you know."

(You-... if there's ever been a bigger hypocrite...)

"You'll be the defense for the case, I suppose? How unfortunate." Raine continued. "You'd have no other reason to come here, after all. So, out with it. What else have you brought here?" she asked. There was a eerily commanding note in her tone, and Phoenix was slightly unnerved. Repressing a shudder, she reached back into her bag.

(Guess I don't have any other options.)

"Ah." Raine said as Phoenix drew out the newspaper article. "I _was_ so hoping you wouldn't bring this up." she didn't sound panicked. Rather, there was a note of smug finality in her tone. "I've no interest in discussing this topic, Ms. Lawyer. But, I must thank you bringing it back to my attention." she took a step back, toward her desk. Reaching a hand under the desk, she pressed a button. "Security. My office, immediately."

"What-..."

"I'm afraid I can't allow you to remain in my office any longer, Ms. Lawyer." Raine said.

"You know, don't you?" Phoenix demanded. "You knew that Micah was onto you. You've been blackmailing anyone you could get near, and Micah had finally caught on!" she was trying to get any scrap of information she could before Raine's security guards arrived. As she heard footsteps in the hallway, she continued, "You were behind the information leak in DL-6, and that's where Micah caught onto it! That's what he's been collecting information on all this time! But, you knew that yourself, right? You had Angelo May spying on him in his office the whole time!"

Raine seemed to be restraining an angry retort; her face was twisted into an awful smile. Just then, the doors flew open and two security guards entered. They took a hold of Phoenix's shoulders.

"You... you did it, didn't you?" Phoenix said as the guards looked toward Raine. The woman gave a noticeable twitch.

"On second thought, Ms. Wright should stay here." she said in a dangerous tone. "Don't let her leave, would you?"

Immediately, the two guards dragged Phoenix toward the wall, pinning her arms to it. Raine picked up a phone from her desk, dialing a number.

A voice came through the speaker. "Ms. White? What is it?"

"Good afternoon, Ms. Edgeworth."

Phoenix gasped. One of the guards covered her mouth with a vicelike grip.

"Yes, I've changed my mind. I'd like to testify in tomorrow's trial. I witnessed the murder myself, you see."

"Why did you not tell me this sooner?" Edgeworth asked.

"I don't think that really matters right now, Ms. Edgeworth. Before I go, though, there's something I need. Send the police over to my office right away."

"May I ask what for?" Edgeworth inquired.

"Certainly. The killer is standing in front of me."

Phoenix's eyes widened. She attempted a shout of protest, but the guard's grip held fast.

"She's been detained, but there's really no telling what she might do, given the chance."

"She? What do you mean, White?"

"I will gladly explain this to you later, Ms. Edgeworth. Right now, I need the police."

"... Very well. I will order a team over immediately."

"Many thanks, Ms. Edgeworth." Raine said, hanging up the phone. She approached Phoenix. "Uncover her mouth, would you?"

The guard dropped his grip on Phoenix's mouth. "What the hell are you up to, White!?" she demanded.

Raine only smirked. "You'll see soon enough, Ms. Lawyer."

Without another word, she drew an arm back, punched Phoenix in the face, and Phoenix lost consciousness.

* * *

_Still doin' what I can here. Good news, though. I've just graduated, so my schedule should be much more open to continue working on the fic._

_(Line about feedback)_


	7. A Second Resolution

_(At first, I couldn't believe what the police were telling me. I had woken up just outside the Bluecorp building, in police custody. I was too confused to process what was going on, but things started to drift back as we drove toward the police station. I remembered confronting White in her office, and figuring out what she had done, but it was still a blank from there on._

_Once we arrived, the officers dragged me into questioning. I still couldn't believe that I was now the one under suspicion, and I asked to speak to Detective Gumshoe, but I was told that she had been taken off the case entirely. I learned that Matty had been released, and I called him as soon as I was given the chance.)_

**September 7th, 6:40 PM**

**Detention Centre**

**Visitor's Room**

"You've got twenty minutes." the guard said from the back of the room as Matty dropped onto the seat on the other side of the window.

"Ms. Wright, what's going on?" he asked, his voice filled with concern. Phoenix hesitated before answering. It was almost unreal, sitting on the inner side of the visitor's room, across from Matty, when just hours ago, it had been the opposite.

"It's definitely not looking good, Matty. I went to White's office with my evidence, but she got the better of me."

She turned aside, staring down at the floor. "I was careless. I went too far accusing White."

"So, she had you thrown in prison?" Matty asked. "But, why did they let me out?"

"White must have a much greater reach than we thought. She's set one hell of a trap for me. I never would've guessed that her blackmail went that far, but somehow, she's managed to make me the defendant in the case, instead of you." Phoenix said.

"But... you can already prove that you didn't kill Micah, right? The detective from the trial said that she was talking to you at the station when he was killed, didn't she?"

Phoenix shook her head. "White's taken care of that, too. When they brought me in, I asked to see Gumshoe, but they told me that she's been taken off the case. There's no way Edgeworth would let her testify now."

"B-but, she already said it in the trial! Doesn't everybody already know?"

"White wouldn't let that get past. No doubt she'll have had Gumshoe's entire testimony removed from the record."

Matty was silent for a few seconds. "You've... really put a lot of thought into this."

"Not much else to do in here." Phoenix said solemnly. "Like I said, it's a hell of a plan White's got."

"Ms. Wright, you saved me in the trial today. There has to be _something_ I can do to help you!" Matty said, almost pleadingly.

"... We'll see, Matty. I wasn't planning on leaving you out. Meet me at the courthouse, before the trial tomorrow."

"I will, Ms. Wright."

Matty was standing to leave, but stopped suddenly. "Who's going to be defending you tomorrow?" he asked.

"They already sent a lawyer in. I refused. I'll be defending myself." Phoenix answered.

"... OK, Ms. Wright. I'll be there."

He turned to leave again.

"Matty?" Phoenix called just before he reached the door. He turned back.

"Yeah?"

"... Just call me Phoenix." she said, smiling.

**September 8th, 9:51 AM**

**District Court**

**Defendant Lobby No. 1**

Phoenix watched the doorway patiently.

(Still have a few minutes... I know he'll be here_.)_

As if on cue, the doors flew open.

"Phoenix!"

Matty rushed into the room, looking both relieved and winded. Taking in a deep breath, he gasped, "I was worried I might not get here on time."

Phoenix smiled. "It's alright. We've still got about ten minutes before the trial starts." she said. She moved over on the bench, motioning for Matty to sit. He dropped onto the seat.

"So, this is it, right?" he said.

"Yep. Whatever happens, this trial ends today. White and Edgeworth are gonna put up a strong fight, so we'd better-"

She froze as the doors opened again. Edgeworth walked in, giving the guard a dismissive nod.

"Edgeworth?" Phoenix said, staring.

"Wright," Edgeworth said, "I received a call from the Prosecutor's Office this morning. I was told that whatever Ms. White says today will be regarded as the absolute truth. Try as you might, if I raise an objection, I have good reason to believe that the judge will listen to me."

She spoke with the utmost severity, never once breaking eye contact.

(Sounds like White's got the judge in her pocket, too_.)_

"So, you're saying that I don't have a chance. I'll be found guilty, right?" Phoenix replied.

Edgeworth paused. "Know that I will do anything to get my verdict, Wright. That is why I stand in court."

"Is that all you're here for?" Matty cut in, jumping up from the bench and glaring at Edgeworth. "You're just here to taunt us?"

Edgeworth froze.

"How can you torment an innocent person like this?" Matty demanded accusingly.

"... 'Innocent'? How can anyone possibly know that? It doesn't matter who they are, the guilty will always lie to save themselves. Nobody can tell who is guilty or innocent. All I can do is ensure that the accused are always convicted. I make that my policy." Edgeworth said fiercely.

"Edgeworth..." Phoenix muttered, taken aback. "... You've changed." Edgeworth glared briefly at her before assuming a neutral expression.

"Don't expect any special treatment, Phoenix Wright." she said. With that, she turned on her heel and walked briskly out of the room.

"What?" Matty asked, astonished. "Phoenix? Do you know Prosecutor Edgeworth from somewhere else?"

Phoenix didn't answer. "Court will be starting soon. We'd better get inside." she said, standing up.

"But..." Matty trailed off as Phoenix left the room.

**September 8th, 10:00 AM**

**District Court**

**Courtroom No. 1**

The drone of voices from around the room seemed slightly more subdued and secretive than on the previous day. Matty stood next to Phoenix behind the defense bench, glancing around at the observers in the gallery. Many of them, it was clear, were discussing their thoughts about White's accusations against Phoenix. They stopped at once as the judge struck his gavel.

Clearing his throat, the judge said, "Court is now in session for the trial of Ms. Phoenix Wright."

"The prosecution is ready, Your Honour." Edgeworth said from across the room.

"The defense is ready, Your Honour." Phoenix said stiffly, aware of the many faces watching her from around the gallery.

"Ms. Wright? Are you certain that you're ready for this?" the judge asked.

Phoenix nodded. "Of course, Your Honour. I'll be defending myself."

"Very well. It is most unheard of, but certainly within the law. Ms. Edgeworth, your opening statement, please."

"The court is already aware of the details of the crime, so we will be hearing from another witness this morning." Edgeworth said.

"You may call this witness." the judge said.

(That seemed too simple... Why didn't the judge ask why White didn't testify yesterday? It's almost as if he already knows...)

"Objection!" Phoenix shouted.

The judge looked surprised. "Already?"

"Ms. Edgeworth, you owe the court an explanation!" Phoenix said. "Why wasn't this witness called in the trial for Mr. Fey yesterday?"

Edgeworth gave a supremely arrogant and dismissive shrug. "My apologies. Ms. White is a particularly busy woman, and prior to yesterday's proceedings, I thought that Mr. May's testimony would suffice for this case. As I was clearly incorrect, I again offer my apologies to the court."

"Excellent, Ms. Edgeworth. I appreciate your sincerity." the judge replied. Phoenix stared at him in disbelief.

(My BS detector's going 'ding'...)

"Now then, I would like to call Ms. Raine White to the stand." Edgeworth said.

White threw the main doors open and entered before Edgeworth had even finished her statement. She approached the stand, an arrogant stride in her steps.

"Please state your full name and occupation." Edgeworth ordered as White settled at the stand.

"You wish to be graced with my full and grandiose title?" White asked, giving the room a frighteningly wide smile.

"Er..." Edgeworth looked unnerved. "Your name will do."

"That's what I said, Ms. Prosecutor! The personal titles assigned to my-"

"Name!" Edgeworth ordered, slamming one hand onto the table.

White rolled her eyes. "My name is Raine White. I am the CEO of Bluecorp."

"Did you know the victim, Mr. Micah Fey?" Edgeworth inquired.

"Not even remotely. I have absolutely no connection to that poor man. Nothing in my past or present relates to the affairs of the deceased in-"

"Yes, very well!" Edgeworth cut in, raising her voice. "Now, you were, I suppose, at the Gatewater Hotel on the day of the murder?"

"That is entirely correct."

"And you witnessed the crime itself?"

"Undoubtedly."

The judge nodded. "In that case, you may begin your testimony. Ms. Wright, you know what to do."

"I can't stand listening to her... Let her have it, Phoenix!" Matty said quietly.

White gave a high false laugh. "I do hope you've settled your debts, Ms. Lawyer." she said. "On the night of the murder, I was devoting my attention to some work-related papers while sitting by the window. Suddenly, there came a terrible noise from the building across the way! I turned to the window, and there, in the office building opposite, was a dark-haired woman attacking the victim! That woman, of course, was you, Ms. Lawyer. I saw the poor man dive to the side in an effort to escape, but your cruel determination drove you to pursue him. Then, you-"

"Hold it!" Phoenix shouted, relieved to have finally spotted something. "Witness, you claim that I chased the victim away from the window, right? Could you be slightly more specific about this?"

"I see no reason to, Ms. Lawyer. Surely you recall the moment you killed Mr. Fey quite vividly?" White said sharply.

"Is something wrong, Ms. Wright?" asked the judge.

"Wh-!? Of course something's wrong! This is an entirely new piece of information!" Phoenix said, staring between the judge and White.

"Hmm. I suppose you have a point. Ms. Edgeworth, do you have any objections?"

Edgeworth paused for a moment, eyes closed in thought, but shook her head. "Let Wright have her fun."

The judge struck his gavel. "Let's hear a bit more about that, witness."

White glowered at Phoenix for the briefest of moments. "... Alright. Like I said, you chased him. He ran to the left side, and you followed."

Phoenix held a hand to the side of her face, thinking this over. She pulled the office's floor plan from her bag. "Doesn't that seem odd to you, witness? If we look at the room's floor plan, we can see that, to the left of the window, there is only a wall. If the victim had run to the left, he would have been running directly away from the door. Not only does that not match up with where his body was found, but running away from the only escape route is hardly the best thing to do when escaping, isn't it?"

White twitched. "It could be said that that point isn't unreasonable..." she said, averting her gaze from Phoenix.

"Phoenix," Matty whispered, "look at White's face. Call me crazy, but I don't think she's lying about this."

Phoenix had to admit that there did appear to be a trace of confusion on White's face.

"I'd like to present a theory, if that's alright with you, Your Honour." she said, her confidence rebuilding.

"Very well. Let's have it, Ms. Wright."

"I propose that Ms. White is not mistaken about this." Phoenix began.

"Ha! If that's the case, what is the purpose of this line of questioning, Wright?" Edgeworth interrupted, smirking.

"I wouldn't get too excited, Edgeworth. If we assume that the victim really did run to the witness's left, then there's really only way scenario that makes sense." Phoenix shot back.

Edgeworth seemed to consider this for a moment. Realizing Phoenix's meaning, she flinched. "You aren't really suggesting that-?"

"Indeed I am, Edgeworth." Phoenix said. She slammed her hands down on the table. "I assert that the witness was not seeing the crime from the hotel at all, but rather, from inside Fey and Co. Law Offices itself!"

At these words, White's face drained of colour, and she let out a shriek of panic. The gallery suddenly began to buzz with voices.

"Order! Order!" the judge shouted, repeatedly striking his gavel. As the chatter subsided, he continued, "Ms. Wright, are you suggesting that the witness was, in fact, present at the crime scene itself at the time of the murder!?"

Phoenix nodded. "That's correct, Your Honour. If we're to trust her word on where the victim ran to, then it's the only possibility that makes sense."

"Objection!" Edgeworth shouted. "Nobody's memory is perfect, Wright! It is entirely possible that the witness is simply recalling the moment incorrectly!"

"Objection!" Phoenix yelled back. "That's hardly fair, accusing your own witness like that, Edgeworth. I suspect that Ms. White remembers it quite clearly, considering that the victim was found near the centre of the room. If we take another look at the floor plan, it shows that, if he had run to the side that she describes, but from the inside, he would have gone right by that location!"

"... Gaack!" Edgeworth choked, falling back a step from the bench.

Phoenix stood upright, a hand on her hip, facing the prosecutor with a sly grin. (I've almost got her. One more push ought to-)

She was pulled out of her thoughts, however, as White suddenly began to laugh. (Wh-? What's she up to now_?)_

"It appears that I am moderately mistaken, everyone. I hope you can all find it in yourselves to forgive me. When I spoke of the moment that the victim was being pursued, I forgot a minor detail."

"Wh-what!?" Phoenix choked, her confident posture collapsing instantaneously.

"Yes, Ms. Lawyer, when I told you all about the victim's attempt to escape, I forgot the specifics. You see, the victim first ran to my left, probably in a state of blind panic, and then, when he found himself in a dead end, he turned, and you fiercely struck him over the forehead. He stumbled, and in a last-ditch effort to flee, he ran back in the other direction. It was then that you struck him again, knocking him to the floor in the centre of the room." White rambled, having returned to her affable façade. The courtroom fell into silence as she finished. "... What are you still smiling about?" she asked, seeing Phoenix's grin return.

"Oh, it's nothing, really, witness. I just thought that you'd be able to do better than that." she answered.

_"What!?" _White yelped.

"I thought you'd have known to check the court's facts first, as well. Even a quick glance at the autopsy report would have told you that the victim was struck only on the back of his head. But then, I suppose you wouldn't need to do that anyway, if you were the one that struck him down in the first place!" Phoenix finished, slamming her desk again.

_"Gaaaah!" _White yelled out, hunching back and pulling at fistfuls of her own hair. The courtroom exploded into conversation once again.

"Objection!" Edgeworth shouted, visibly panicked. "Your Honour, the witness is clearly confused! I suggest a ten minute recess, to allow her to sort out her-"

"Objection!" Phoenix cut in. "She's only confused about her own lies! I strongly advise against such a break!"

Shouts of approval sounded from the gallery. "Yeah! Don't let her get away!", and "A break would just give to her time to make something else up!" were among their number.

"Order! Very well, Ms. Wright. If the witness would care to revise her testimony," the judge said.

(Perfect! The crowd's on my side! There's nowhere to run now, White!)

"Er, you see... I..." White stammered, sweat running down her face.

"Objection!" Edgeworth shouted. "That's far enough, Wright!"

(Ack! I forgot about Edgeworth!)

"No matter how long we stay on this line a questioning, we'll never be able to prove your scenario right or wrong." the prosecutor said, "You have no clear evidence to support your claim, but I will come forth and admit that I too lack the evidence to support my own. So, I suggest that we move on to a different angle. Can you, Phoenix Wright, prove that Raine White had any reason to kill the victim, Micah Fey?"

(Sorry to knock that grin off your face, Edgeworth.)

"Of course I can!" Phoenix replied, returning to her confident posture.

"What!?" Edgeworth gasped; whatever she had been expecting to hear, it clearly wasn't that.

"I ask the court to recall one of the cell phone conversations that was brought up in yesterday's trial. The victim and I were discussing a blackmailing case that he was investigating. Mr. Fey sent me to the police station to retrieve some related files for him. I happen to have them right here."

_"Whaaaaaat!?" _White practically screamed as Phoenix drew the folder from her bag. She seemed to have struck a nerve.

"This file details a rather high-profile information leak from fourteen years ago. The police attempted to find the person responsible for the leak, but ultimately failed. This incident, as a matter of fact, involved the victim's father, Milo Fey, as well as his mentor, Marta Grossberg. As I've been told by the victim's brother, Mr. Matty Fey, the victim was compiling a file of incidents that he suspected a certain person's involvement in. More specifically, a string of similar incidents, in which the police failed to track down a culprit in information leaks and the like. The victim suspected that the perpetrator behind these cases was none other than our witness, Ms. Raine White." Phoenix explained, slamming the folder down onto the desk as she finished. Once again, voices sounded all around the room.

"Nice one, Phoenix! Mic must have been about to catch her, and that's why she did it!" Matty said.

"My thoughts exactly, Matty." Phoenix replied, watching Edgeworth's expression. The prosecutor's face was devoid of all colour, and her mind seemed to be working furiously to find an objection. The judge was striking his gavel, attempting to silence the riled crowd. White, on the other hand...

"Hah! Ha ha ha hah! You think you've got this all squared away, don't you, Ms. Lawyer?" she laughed. Her face was twisted into a smile, but she was still sweating profusely.

_(What!? How can she possibly get around it now!?)_

"You say that Mr. Fey had put together a file on me, but can you possibly show it to the court? I doubt so very much!"

Phoenix flinched. "I... I can't-!" she gasped.

"Hah! I thought so!" White roared, leaning forward over the stand and looking nearly deranged.

A long silence followed. Finally, the judge said, "Ms. Wright, I applaud your effort. But, if you really can't provide this file to the court, I am afraid that I cannot allow you to continue this line of questioning."

_(No! Not after all this-!)_

"I... I... can't, Your Honour..." Phoenix admitted, her voice shaking.

"I see." the judge said. Suddenly, White broke into a fit of laughter, throwing her head back, eyes wide. The entire courtroom stared in shock.

"Phoenix! Are we really... gonna lose it now?" Matty asked desperately. Phoenix found herself unable to answer; her breathing was suddenly laboured, and she couldn't speak.

White's mad laughter continued, until...

_"OBJECTION!" _Every head in the room turned again, this time to face the defense bench.

"Matty-!?" Phoenix began, freezing as she turned to face him. The person standing next to her wore Matty's clothes, but was much taller, appearing to be several years older. He stood facing White, his arm outstretched.

"Not quite, Phoenix." said the man next to her, giving her a defiant grin. It was loud enough for her to hear, but the rest of the court seemed not to notice. Phoenix gasped, clapping her hand to her mouth.

_"M-... __Micah!?"_

"Now you've got it." Micah said. "Raine White! We've reached the end of your rope! I know that you blackmailed Grossberg into exposing that information about my father, I know that you stole the files from my office, and make no mistake, if you don't admit it right now, I will ensure that everyone in this room hears your whole story for themselves!"

White froze. She began to convulse, and let out a horrible scream. Her eyes rolled back in her head, and she tore a great amount of her hair out, throwing it aside. Finally, she slammed her head down onto the stand with a staggering crash.

"I... I admit it. Everything. I... I killed Micah Fey." she said tonelessly. Phoenix had to resist the urge to give a shout of victory, but couldn't prevent a wide smile from crossing her face.

It was nearly a full minute before the judge could silence the crowd. White was dragged from the room by two guards, making no effort to resist. At last, the judge faced the defense bench and said, "Well, Ms. Wright. You've done it again. That was a truly impressive defense."

"Thank you again, Your Honour." Phoenix said, rubbing her neck in mild embarrassment. Edgeworth was slumped over her bench, barely holding herself up.

(There goes your perfect record, Edgeworth_.)_

"Now, I suppose it's time." the judge went on. "This court finds the defense- er, the defendant, rather, Ms. Phoenix Wright, not guilty."

A deafening applause broke out as a shower of confetti rained down again, just like in Lexine's trial.

"That is all! Court is adjourned!" the judge shouted, striking his gavel one final time.

**September 8th, 1:14 PM**

**District Court**

**Defendant Lobby No. 1**

"Micah, what the _hell _is going on?" Phoenix asked, her confusion back in full force after the trial's hectic end.

"You know, I figured you'd have pieced that together by now, Phoenix." Micah said, tilting his head to the side and smiling.

"Matty... he managed to channel you, didn't he?"

Micah's grin widened. "See, I knew you'd get it. I feel bad for him, though. It took him a huge effort to pull me back, and he didn't even get to see you finally send White up the river."

"But, I didn't even get the job done, Boss, it was you that-"

"Come on, Phoenix. Don't do this to yourself now. It was you that pushed White to the edge, and there's no shame in needing a little help to wrap things up." Micah said, setting a hand on Phoenix's shoulder.

"I... Thanks, Boss." Phoenix said, returning the smile.

"Hey now, there's no need for the 'Boss' thing now." Micah said. Phoenix was about to respond when the doors flew open.

"Ms. Wright!" came the voice of Mrs. Grossberg. "You did it! I can hardly believe it, but you managed to put that horrid woman in her place."

"It's about time, too." said Micah, turning to face his ex-mentor.

Grossberg gasped. "M-Micah? Is that you?" she asked faintly.

"You bet. Not quite in the flesh, but it's me, all the same." Micah said.

"Your brother..." Grossberg mumbled.

"Yep. We've all got Matty to thank." Micah said. "If he hadn't come through at the last minute, this might've been a different show entirely."

"Micah... I..." Grossberg said softly.

"It's... alright, Mrs. Grossberg. I don't blame you for what happened to my father. You were just one of the dozens of people that White got after. Even if I did, White's going to prison, where she belongs. It's all in the past."

As Micah finished speaking, he stepped forward and embraced his ex-mentor. The veteran attorney suppressed a sob, and a moment later, they separated.

"It's time for me to get going." Micah said, taking a step back. "Until we meet again, Phoenix, Mrs. Grossberg."

A faint sort of glow seemed to be emanating from his body. Suddenly, his features began to change. His height decreased, and within a few moments, Matty Fey stood in his place.

Opening his eyes, Matty looked up. His eyes were slightly bloodshot, and he looked exhausted. "It's over, right, Phoenix?" he asked, sounding extremely concerned.

Phoenix smiled. "Yeah. It's over, Matty." she said. As bright a smile as Matty could still manage lit his tired face. "You saved us in there." Phoenix added.

"I... I did? That's... good..." Matty's voice began to fade. He shuffled over to the bench against the wall and dropped onto it.

"Matty?" Phoenix asked. Matty didn't respond.

"He's exhausted." Grossberg said, giving Matty a motherly smile. "I suppose your car isn't here, is it, Ms. Wright?"

Phoenix shook her head.

"Bring him out to my car, then, and I'll give you both a ride home."

**September 8th, 1:33 PM**

**Criminal Affairs Department**

"Thank you for the ride, Mrs. Grossberg. My car's just been released, so I can get Matty home."

"Alright. Congratulations again, Ms. Wright. Do drop by my office if you ever need a word in the future." Grossberg said, driving out of the lot. Phoenix crossed the precinct parking lot and approached her car. Matty, who was still unconscious, was hanging over her shoulder. She shifted his weight to retrieve her keys, and opened the car door. After securing a seatbelt onto Matty, she stepped into the driver's seat.

**September 8th, 4:50 PM**

**Phoenix Wright's Apartment**

Matty blinked slowly; his eyelids felt heavy. He looked around. He was in a warmly lit room, lying on a couch.

"Are you still with us, Matty?" a voice drifted in, and he looked up.

"Phoenix...?" he mumbled.

"Nice to see you awake." Phoenix said, ruffling his hair with one hand. Matty sat up.

"Is this your apartment?" he asked, his words slightly slurred.

"Yep. I brought you here after you passed out in the courthouse." Phoenix answered, giving him a warm smile.

"Oh... thanks."

Phoenix laughed softly. "Not a problem." she said. She stood up, crossing the room. As she left what Matty guessed was her living room, he felt something in one of the pockets of his robes, and pulled it out. It was a small handwritten note. He immediately recognized the handwriting.

_(Mic...)_

-_Hey, Matty. _

_I can't thank you enough for what you did in the trial. Don't tease Phoenix about it too much, though, OK?- _it began.

Matty felt tears sting his eyes as he finished reading Micah's note. He put it back into his pocket as Phoenix returned to the room.

"Say, Matty?" she asked, sitting down.

"Yeah?"

"When you were on the phone with Micah the other day, you said that you were working out a deal to get yourself an apartment, right?" she inquired.

"Yep."

"Well, I've been thinking, if that doesn't work out, I'd be happy to let you move in here."

Matty's face brightened. "Really?"

Phoenix nodded. "Definitely. It's lonely like you wouldn't believe around here." she smiled again, but gave Matty an odd look as he began to chuckle. "What're you laughing about?"

"Heh, I was just realizing, that works out pretty well." he answered.

"What do you mean?"

"Well," he said, pulling the note back out of his pocket, "see for yourself." Phoenix took the note. She read it under her breath.

-_Hey, Matty. _

_I can't thank you enough for what you did in the trial. Don't tease Phoenix about it too much, though, OK? You'll have plenty of chances to, as I expect you to stick with her in the law office. We both know you need something to do with your time, and if today's trial is any indication, you two make a great team. Make sure she gets a strong start, would you? She'll need it, if she's gonna be running Wright and Co. Law Offices, after all. If you ever need help again, you know what to do. _

_Love, Micah.-_

"Wright and Co..." she muttered in disbelief.

"Yep." Matty said, grinning. "Sounds like Micah wants you to run the place. Living here just makes it easier for me to help you out. So, anything you need me to do, Boss?"

Phoenix stared at him. Her mind was reeling. "Just, uh... just get all the rest you need, Matty." she said distractedly, turning away.

Matty laughed. "I think I'll be set for this job."

* * *

_~Look at me and my stupendously large work ethic~_

_I'm gonna try and do better after this one._

_Anyhoo, you know the drill; please leave feedback and the like._


	8. Bridge Building

**September 9th, 8:48 AM**

**Phoenix Wright's Apartment**

"Morning, Boss!" rang Matty's voice, jolting Phoenix awake. She blinked and looked up to see Matty framed in the doorway.

"... This is 'morning' to you?" she groaned, dragging a pillow over her head.

"That's what we call it when the sun comes into view, yeah." Matty replied, a cheeky smile on his face. Phoenix only gave an annoyed grunt in response. "Fine. Not a morning lawyer, then." Matty said, turning back around. "I made you some coffee, just in case you were only half-awake." he called over his shoulder as he left.

Still holding a pillow over her head, Phoenix smiled to herself.

(He knows how to make a first impression, at least. Although, the "Boss" thing is gonna take some getting used to.)

She hesitantly swung her legs over the side of the bed and sat up. After crossing the room to shut the door, she changed into her usual blue suit.

Matty was sitting at the small kitchen table when Phoenix entered. She froze, staring in disbelief at the table. An alarmingly large stack of empty dishes sat in front of Matty on the table, which he was continuing to add to as he worked through what had to be his eleventh serving of breakfast. He gave her an odd look. "You're gonna wear a suit today, too? You're not even working today!" he said. He looked expectantly at Phoenix, waiting for a response.

"Are we just... _not_ gonna talk about how you just ate everything in my entire fridge?" Phoenix asked, still staring incredulously at the table.

Matty paused, taking a brief glance at the dishes in front of him. "... Oh. Right." His eyes drifted for a few seconds as he struggled to think of a response. "Well... how d'you think _you'd _be doing after a few days of nothing but prison food?"

"... Point taken." Phoenix said, sitting down.

"Besides, you looked like you needed help cleaning out your fridge a bit." Matty added, earning an amused half-glare. He passed a cup of coffee to Phoenix before standing up to clear away his vast array of dishes.

"It's a shame you didn't have any burgers, though..." he muttered as he placed everything in the dishwasher. "I guess we can do that for lunch."

Phoenix rolled her eyes, taking a sip of her coffee. Several seconds of silence followed. "Before you settle into living here, I feel like I should ask," Phoenix finally interjected, "is this gonna be a regular thing? Y'know, you eating three times your own body weight in one morning alone?"

Matty glanced down in thought. "... You don't know my body weight."

Without another word, he left the room. Phoenix sighed.

(I'll just assume that's a yes, then.)

* * *

It wasn't until a few minutes later that Phoenix heard anything from Matty. She had just finished her coffee when the boy's voice sounded from another room.

"Whoa-!" he exclaimed. Phoenix leaned into the room and saw him rifling through a shelf of disc cases.

"Oh, those?"

"You really do want me to stay here, don't ya?" Matty said, grinning. "You didn't mention to me last night that you just happened to be sitting on a mountain of video games!"

"Just a hobby..." Phoenix muttered. She made to return to the kitchen, but Matty continued.

"Hey, video games are _not_ something you make a hobby out of. They're a _commitment."_

(I get the feeling that this isn't an argument I want to be in_.)_

"Here's an idea. Why don't I just pretend that you wanted me to show you around the apartment?" Phoenix asked, crossing her arms and leaning against the doorframe.

"... 'Kay." Matty replied after a moment, apparently hesitant to change the subject.

"Well, come on, then." Phoenix said, beckoning to him as she left the room.

"You've already seen the kitchen and living room, so this is the guest room. I've never had to use it for anybody before, and I doubt I'll need to any time soon, so I guess it'll be your room once we get you a bed." Phoenix rambled as Matty paced around the small room.

"Who that with you in these pictures?" he asked, motioning toward a row of framed photos. "I can see Micah in one, but..."

"That's a friend of mine; Lexine Butz." Phoenix answered. She wasn't remotely surprised to see Matty suppressing a laugh at Lexine's surname. "You can laugh, everybody does."

Matty gladly obliged. Once he had calmed down, Phoenix continued, "I've known Lex since we were in elementary school, so I've got a lot of pictures with her."

Matty looked thoughtful. After a significant pause, he said, "That reminds me... You didn't answer me back in the courthouse. Y'know, when I asked you about Prosecutor Edgeworth?"

Phoenix looked down at the floor, turning away slightly. "I... knew Edgeworth in school, too. She's... changed, to say the least." she answered quietly.

"Yeah, she didn't seem like the nicest lady around." Matty said. "Anyway, what's left to see in here?"

"Nothing, really. You already tracked down my room, so there's not much else to say."

"Oh, that reminds me!" Matty suddenly cut in, darting past her and off toward her room.

"Hold it!" she shouted as he turned the corner. Matty looked back as she caught up with him.

"What?"

"Matty, you're not gonna tell me that you've made it through seventeen years of your life without figuring out that you're _not_ supposed to go and barge into a woman's bedroom, are you?"

"I'm just proving that you don't need to wear a suit when you aren't working," he said with an 'obviously' sort of tone.

"And what if I told you that I happen to like wearing it?"

"Phoenix, you've worn a suit just like that for at least the last three days. You've gotta have somethin' else."

"You've been wearing those same robes the whole time, too." Phoenix said, beginning to have fun with the argument.

Matty put on an annoyed sort of pout. "Just take off the suit."

"Aren't we a little early in the relationship for that?" Phoenix joked, leaning back against the wall.

Matty's face flushed deeply red and he stared down at the floor. "Y-you know what I mean..."

Phoenix laughed lightly for a moment. "Alright, if it bothers you that much, I'll put on something else."

"... Thanks." Matty mumbled, walking back toward the living room.

"Of course, I'll need to take _everything_ off for a shower first," Phoenix called over her shoulder.

Matty blushed again. "Now you're just being mean..."

* * *

Later on, Matty disappeared for several hours, returning to the apartment with a suitcase.

"I got all my stuff from home." he said as Phoenix opened the door.

"Good. You might as well drop everything in your room now, so we can go and get everything else before you organize it.

Matty chuckled, muttering, "_Organize_..." under his breath. He pushed past Phoenix and trudged off toward the now-empty guest room. Phoenix checked on him a few minutes later and found him pinning up a series of flashy posters, all with the same logo emblazoned on them.

"The... Steel Samurai?" she read, looking curiously at the crowded pictures on each poster.

"You bet!" Matty said brightly, adjusting the angle of one of them.

"Isn't that show targeted at people about half your age?

"Hey!" Matty said indignantly, pointing a finger at Phoenix. "You telling me you've never heard of a periphery demographic?"

"Uh..."

"You and all your video games, maybe?"

"I-... You win." Phoenix said, holding her hands up.

"Thought so. The Steel Samurai's great, and anybody who says he isn't is lying."

"This is a... pretty serious topic with you, isn't it?"

Matty paused. "It's not just me..." he grumbled quietly.

Phoenix, thinking it best to drop the subject, left Matty to finish arranging his belongings and returned to her own room. She sat down and glanced around, boredom beginning to set in. Her eyes lingered on her cell phone.

"Hey, Phoenix. What's goin' on?" Lexine's voice asked.

"Not a lot right now, Lex. There're just some things I need to tell you about." Phoenix replied.

"'Kay. You had any other trials lately or something?

"There was... one." Phoenix paused, taking a deep breath to steady her voice. "My boss, Micah, was murdered a few days ago."

"_WHAT!?"_ Lexine practically screamed. "Why didn't you call me about it sooner!?"

"I... didn't really have time to. I was busy the whole time, investigating. And then I was arrested, and-"

Lexine really did scream did time. Phoenix held the phone away from her ear as her friend's voice shrilly rang, "_WHAAAAT!?_"

"You- they threw _you _in jail!? Why didn't you tell me _that!?_"

"S-sorry, Lex. Like I said, there wasn't really a lot of time to-"

"I'm comin' over right now, and we're talking about this the right way."

"Wait, Lex-!"

-_click-_

Phoenix sighed, setting her phone down. "Matty?" she called out.

"Yeah?"

"You know my friend Lexine, from the pictures you asked me about?"

"Yeah?"

"She's gonna be coming over here pretty soon."

"Oh. OK, I'll just finish up with my stuff so I can meet her!"

* * *

Lexine, as it turned out, reached the apartment in a remarkably short time.

"Hey, Phoenix!" she said as soon as the door was open. She grabbed her friend in a hug, but froze when she saw Matty standing a few feet behind Phoenix. "Who'zat?" she asked, staring at him.

"Er, hi, I'm Matty." he offered nervously. Lexine backed up a step, staring at Phoenix now.

"Phoenix," she began, a hint of caution in her voice, "is there somethin' _else_ you gotta to tell me? Like, _why_ you've got a kid in your apartment?"

"Of the two thousand ideas that are probably running through your head right now, Lex, I doubt any of them are even close to correct." Phoenix said embarrassedly.

"Huh. In that case, I bet I'm in for a hell of a story." Lexine said, relaxing with a grin.

"You could say that." Matty said as Phoenix moved aside for Lexine to enter.

The trio sat in the living room as Phoenix set into her explanation of the trial's events. Lexine would, every so often, interrupt to ask a question or simply to express a reaction.

"_Edgeworth?_" she repeated in shock on one such occasion. "No shit? _Merle Edgeworth?_

"Lex, have I ever been a good liar?"

"... Nah, you've got a point there." Lexine admitted. "Still, Merle... that's just nuts."

Both women were silent for a few seconds. Matty glanced back and forth between them. Both appeared to be deep in thought, and the silence was beginning to grate on his nerves.

"As much as I hate to interrupt this _riveting _silence," he finally exclaimed, "I'm still the only one out of the loop here about how you two know Edgeworth."

"Huh-?" Phoenix and Lexine both absentmindedly grunted.

"O-oh, right. Sorry about that, Matty." Phoenix said, giving an apologetic smile. "Like I told you before, we met Edgeworth in school. We were all in the same fourth grade class. It's... not something I really want to talk about." Her face fell as she ended her brief explanation. Matty watched her for a moment before setting a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey. It's alright. If you don't wanna talk about it, it's fine. I don't need to know that badly." he said.

"... Thanks, Matty." Phoenix said quietly.

"Aww," Lexine teasingly cooed, "you two are friggin' adorable." Phoenix gave her a half-hearted glare as she gave an exaggerated swoon. "Anyway, back to the story?" she suddenly barked, her demeanour returning to normal in an instant.

"Right..."

Phoenix resumed her long-winded explanation, Matty cutting in occasionally to emphasize his own role. Nearing the end of the story, Phoenix's mood seemed to degrade, leaving her voice discouraged and toneless.

"So..." Lexine started after Phoenix finally finished, "you're telling me that this nasty lady did _all that shit_ to Matty's family, and then tried to throw you under the bus, too?"

"That sums it up pretty well." Matty answered first.

"Not cool..." Lexine said, still in disbelief. "Well, anyway, Phoenix is too good at her job to let that happen, obviously." she added, giving her friend an encouraging grin.

"And I think she's got a pretty fantastic assistaaaant~" Matty chimed, nudging Phoenix with an elbow.

"... Thanks." Phoenix said yet again. She straightened up. "You're both right. I shouldn't be beating myself up over it anyway; we won, after all."

"That's the way, Boss." Matty said with a bright smile.

From there, they broke into a casual conversation that ran through numerous topics. Eventually, Lexine glanced toward the clock.

"I guess I should get outta here." she said, standing up. "You probably have some stuff to do, since you just moved in, right, Matty?"

"Yeah." Matty answered, nodding. He and Phoenix stood up as well, following Lexine to the door. She gave a farewell and stepped out into the hallway before stopping.

With a sly grin on her face, she added, "Course, you two might also have a few other things to do, right? More... _personal_ things?"

_"Lex..._" Phoenix warned.

"Alright, alright. It's none of my business, after all." she said, setting a hand on the door. Just before closing it, however, she chided, "But really, Phoenix, a minor?"

Phoenix aimed a slap at her, which she dodged with a laugh. Starting down the hall, she called back, "Watch it on the first date, OK, Matty?"

"You're a terrible person!" Phoenix called, still annoyed.

"Love you, too!" Lexine shouted back as she disappeared into the stairwell.

Matty laughed. "Is that how you two always say goodbye?" he asked.

"... Usually." Phoenix admitted, a smile showing through her attempted frown. Matty closed the door, and the two walked back to the living room. Halfway there, he added, "Now, 'bout that first date..."

"Do I need to slap you, too?" Phoenix asked, giving her best effort to hold in her laughter.

"Only if I get to hit back." Matty said coyly. They sat back down on the couch, and he gave a shrug. "I guess Lex _is_ right, though."

"About what?"

"Why would I wanna date an old lady like you, anyway?"

-_**smack**__-_

* * *

_Insert drivel about my work ethic and some excuse here._

_Now that we've had a quick break for some character building, we'll be jumping into our next case. 'Course, you know what that means._


	9. Fall of the Evil Magistrate

**October 16th, 10:15 AM**

**Phoenix Wright's Apartment**

In nearly all respects, it could have been considered a quiet morning. Phoenix barely made a noise as she calmly moved about the kitchen, taking her time in assembling a breakfast while lightly sipping a mug of coffee. Until a sudden resounding crash issued from the living room, the apartment was near silent. Phoenix sighed, leaving the kitchen to check on the source of the noise. In the time just after Matty had moved into the apartment, Phoenix had always been relatively panicked whenever such a noise occurred, but in the intervening time, it had become perfectly customary for Matty to cause minor disasters in his free time, which Phoenix had quickly learned to take in stride.

She found Matty standing against the wall of the living room, having somehow managed to upend the couch by himself. Leaning against the doorframe, she remarked, "Getting a bit overzealous again?"

This was hardly a rare occurrence. The most common catalyst for Matty's usual antics was the weekly airing of The Steel Samurai, the surreal visuals of which were still flashing by on the TV screen.

"No shame in practicing the ways of the samurai for myself." Matty said offhandedly, taking a grip on the underside of the couch to lift it upright.

Phoenix gave a lighthearted chuckle before replying, "I s'pose there's no shame in reaching your emotional peak at about six years old, either."

Without waiting for Matty's delayed response, she returned to the kitchen to resume preparing her breakfast. After finishing her preparations and sitting down at the table, her thoughts turned to reflection upon her life's recent developments. It had only been just over a month since Matty had entered her life, but he had already brought a great many lifestyle changes in his wake. Phoenix had recently taken to eating later in the morning than she had in the past, on account of the scale of Matty's frequent attacks on their food supply. On the same note, they had reached a compromise pertaining to grocery shopping a week after Matty moved in: so long as Matty prepared food for and cleaned up after himself, she wouldn't dock his pay to continue buying their food.

Matty's appetite, however, was not the only reason for which Phoenix had made the arrangement. Even with two court wins under her belt, Phoenix had, at the time, been in imminent danger of running out of money. She hadn't charged Lexine a cent for defending her in her first trial, and there was hardly money to be made in earning herself an acquittal in her second, after all. She had taken care not to mention the financial situation to Matty. In the wake of his brother's murder, she wasn't entirely confident in her assistant's emotional state, and didn't want to risk having him blame himself for her own troubles.

These concerns had been alleviated, however, just two weeks ago. In the midst of the fallout from Raine White's arrest, Phoenix had received a call from a secretary at Grossberg Law Offices. The secretary informed her that the firm had filed a major lawsuit against White for her years of fraudulent dealings. The case had been easily won, and Grossberg had received a truly massive sum of money from Bluecorp as a result. She had, in turn, arranged for Phoenix to be given several hundred thousand dollars as proper thanks for her work in bringing White to justice. Phoenix was struck momentarily speechless by this news, but Matty's unbridled excitement was easily enough for both of them.

* * *

Phoenix laughed as she recalled exactly the way that Matty had practically danced around the apartment, completely unable to contain his enthusiasm. After receiving the money from Grossberg, her first priority had been to contact Micah's landlord and buy out the small Wright & Co. office building, but by the second day, her better judgement finally succumbed to Matty's incessant begging, and she agreed to indulge in a less-than-professional trip to the mall. At the very least, she was able to use the last of her self-restraint to establish a spending limit for the trip which, to her utter lack of surprise, Matty easily reached less than two hours after arriving. So, with an extravagant supply of new possessions in tow, they had returned to the apartment, chatting away like a pair of children at Christmas.

A loud scraping noise pulled Phoenix out of her thoughts and told her that Matty had successfully righted the couch. She considered checking on him, but decided to wait until after finishing her breakfast. As such, it was not until several minutes later that she heard anything more from her assistant.

"_Wh-whaaaaaat!?_" was the panicked exclamation that finally drew Phoenix's attention back to Matty.

"Matty? Something wrong?" she called out, concerned. Hearing no response, she stood up and moved to the living room. Matty was staring at the TV, his face aghast. Phoenix followed his gaze to the screen. The introductory sequence to a morning news report was just reaching its end.

"Matty?"

"B-Boss! On the news just now-! Th-The Steel Samurai!" Matty sputtered. Phoenix's blank look only seemed to agitate him further. "The Steel Samurai's been arrested!"

"Uh..."

"They're saying that he killed a villain!"

"... Isn't he supposed to do that...?" Phoenix asked, completely bewildered. Matty gave a frustrated groan and grabbed onto her arm.

"Just... watch..." he huffed, dragging her toward the couch. Just as they sat down, the news report resumed.

_"On to our top story this morning,"_the reporter began as Matty pointed unnecessarily toward the screen, _"LA resident and famed television actress Wanda Powers was arrested this morning, following the discovery of the body of fellow actress Janine Hammer. Hammer, Powers' co-star on the popular youth TV series, "The Steel Samurai: Warrior of Neo Olde Tokyo", was found dead in her personal trailer at the Global Studios film site late last night. When found, Hammer was still wearing the costume of her character, The Evil Magistrate. Police found the Samurai Spear, a prop wielded by Powers' character, the titular Steel Samurai, lying next to the body. Early forensic tests suggest this to be the murder weapon."_

As the report reached its end, Matty shook Phoenix's arm. "Y'see, Boss!? This is a major disaster! We need to get to the detention centre right away!"

"What for...?"

Matty stared at Phoenix as if she were insane for a moment, apparently unable to comprehend her calm nature.

"Boss, we need to take his case! The Steel Samurai would never kill anyone!"

He paused before adding, "Outside of the show, I mean..."

Phoenix was slowly running the information through her head from the beginning. "'_Her_ case.'" was the only phrase to leave her mouth.

"What?"

"The Steel Samurai is played by a woman." she corrected.

"Wh-... Whatever!" Matty sputtered, "The Steel Samurai's been thrown in jail, and you're complaining about pronouns!?"

To Matty's great frustration, Phoenix didn't answer, remaining absorbed in thought. Several seconds passed, and his patience failed. Darting around to her back and reaching up to her shoulders, he began pushing Phoenix toward the door.

"Objection-!" Phoenix yelped, nearly losing her balance. She planted her feet and spun around. "Matty, what makes you so sure that this woman is really innocent?" she asked as her diminutive assistant glared up at her.

Matty looked deeply offended. "What!? See, Boss, _this_ is why you need to watch the show! The Steel Samurai is a warrior of justice! He would never, _ever-"_

"Alright!" Phoenix cut in, suspecting that the conversation wouldn't be going anywhere constructive. "We'll go to the centre. I'm gonna say now, though, this lady's probably already got a lawyer-"

"Go!" Matty cut her off, attempting to start pushing at her shoulders again.

**October 16th, 11:04 AM**

**Detention Centre**

**Visitor's Room**

"Wanda Powers?" the guard repeated in a slightly drawling voice. "You her attorney, then?"

Phoenix hesitated.

"Yes, yes!" Matty answered impatiently. It seemed to satisfy the guard, who disappeared through the back doorway.

"She'll already have a lawyer..." Phoenix repeated quietly. Without saying anything, Matty reached up and jabbed a finger against her head. Phoenix flinched and lightly punched Matty in the arm. This swiftly escalated into a quiet scuffle that only halted when the guard's door reopened.

"Hmph. I swear, you can't be more than six years old..." Phoenix muttered.

The guard entered the room with a woman, who hesitantly lowered herself into the chair in front of the window.

"Ms. Powers?" Phoenix asked.

"Y-yeah..." Powers answered in a tiny voice. She was a tall woman, with a muscular physique and wild red hair.

"We... heard what happened on the news." Phoenix said.

"Pardon me, but... you're lawyers, aren't you?" Powers asked, still very quietly. Matty nodded vigourously.

"Yep! ... Well, Phoenix is the lawyer, anyway. Phoenix Wright." he said.

Powers seemed to relax. She released the tension in her shoulders and leaned forward against the tabletop, managing a small smile.

"I'm glad to hear that. The guard, he said that my lawyer was here to see me, but Global Studios doesn't assign lawyers to individual employees. Well, the producer has one, but otherwise..."

Matty briefly gave Phoenix what looked like an attempt at an "I told you so" smirk, which fell flat on delivery.

(Aww... Matty, that really _was_adorable...)

Barely holding back a giggle, Phoenix turned back to Powers. "Ms. Powers, do you mind if we ask you a few questions?"

"Go ahead."

"Alright. First off, could you give me a quick backgrounder on yourself and the victim?"

"Sure. Janine and I met at Global Studios a little over two years ago, when we were both hired on as stunt doubles. They were about to start shooting for The Steel Samurai. After a few practices, though, the director talked to both of us about some issues she was having with the two leading actors. They'd had a falling out of some kind, I guess, so she asked both of us if we'd consider taking on the roles ourselves." Powers said.

"Hmm. Sorry, those roles are the Steel Samurai and...?" Phoenix trailed off, realizing she had forgotten the other name.

Matty groaned. "The Evil Magistrate, Phoenix. Duh."

Powers suddenly tensed back up, clasping her hands to her mouth. "Oh no, are you a fan!?" she asked in a panic.

"Yep!" Matty said, nodding energetically. "Name's Matty! I've never missed an episode!"

"Oh no, no no no no...!" Powers squeaked, shrinking back from the window.

"What's wrong-?" Matty asked, shocked.

"I-... I n-never show my face a-around fans...!" Powers said, her voice quavering as she made a rather pitiful effort to conceal her face. Matty looked astonished.

"... Why? What's wrong with-"

"Oh, th-the fans expect to see a r-really tough and cool guy under the mask, not some timid lady w-with-..." she broke off, giving a shudder. Phoenix could only stare in disbelief.

(So, the Steel Samurai's got some self esteem issues...)

"But you play the Samurai so well!" Matty argued, "Why would the fans be disappointed by seeing your real face?"

"I... Oh, I don't know... C-could we talk about something else-?"

It was shocking, the way that Powers' nerve had vanished so rapidly.

"Alright, Ms. Powers, next question." Phoenix said, thinking it best to move on. "What's your alibi for the time of the murder?"

With a relieved smile, Powers answered, "I was taking a nap in my trailer the whole time. We had just eaten, and I was pretty exhausted, so I headed back for a rest, but the next thing I knew, the police were rushing in, and I found out that Janine was dead, a-

and-..." her voice failed again and she slumped back in her chair.

Phoenix thought it over. " So, if you're in here, I guess nobody could confirm that you really were asleep, is that right?"

"Y-yeah... I only talked to Janine just after lunch, before I left." Powers replied, trying to steady her voice.

(Ouch... So, that's basically no alibi at all, then.)

"Hmm... One more question, then, Ms. Powers. Is there anybody at the studio that you might ever suspect of killing Ms. Hammer?"

"No..." Powers quietly replied, dropping her gaze to the floor as she thought. "Janine got on pretty well with everyone most of the time..."

Phoenix gave Matty a hopeful glance, but he seemed to be out of ideas as well. She rose from her chair.

"Well, thanks for your time, Ms. Powers," she began.

"No, no, I should be thanking you! If you hadn't come by, I'd be left with one of those state-appointed attorneys, and then I wouldn't've had a chance!" Powers said, waving a hand.

"Heh, you think so?" Matty asked.

"Oh, definitely." Powers affirmed, "The studio's manager warned us about that when we first joined the studio."

She too rose from her seat as the guard reopened the exit door.

"I'm sorry if I wasn't much help, Ms. Wright. Before you go, though, I can give you this," she added, taking a scrap of paper from the countertop. She hastily scribbled something onto it and slid it through the window's small opening. "That's my signature at the bottom, there. It'll get you by security at the studio, if you need to go there."

"Right. Thanks, Ms. Powers." Phoenix said, pocketing the paper.

* * *

After leaving the detention centre, Phoenix pulled the note back out of her pocket. She had just begun to look it over, when...

"Yeah, yeah, gimme that." Matty said, swiping the note from her hand.

"Matty, what-?"

"We'll let the security guys at the studio see it, but after that, it's mine." Matty said. "This is a genuine Steel Samurai autograph, Phoenix; it's gettin' _framed_back in the office."

Phoenix shook her head resignedly and gave an amused sigh, continuing back toward her car.

**October 16th, 11:55 AM**

**Global Studios**

**Main Gate**

"This looks like the place." Phoenix said as she pulled into an open parking space. It wasn't until several seconds after she left the car that she realized Matty wasn't following her. "Matty?" she looked back and saw him still sitting in the car. "Matty." she repeated, opening the passenger door. Matty's eyes were practically sparkling as he stared in apparent amazement at the studio lot. Phoenix waved a hand in his face to no response. "Matty, we're here to investigate a murder."

Still no response. Phoenix groaned. "Matty, this really isn't a good time for you to go fanboy on me." she glanced around the car and saw the signed note sitting on the dashboard. The instant that she made to pick it up, Matty lunged forward to take it back first. He seemed to realize what he had been doing a second after retrieving the note.

"... Heh... Sorry, Boss." he muttered, leaving the car.

At the front of the studio lot stood a brightly painted sign proclaiming the company's name, affiliates, and motto. Beneath it was a security booth, which Matty rushed off toward.

"Now, hold it right there!" came an impressively loud voice from the security booth. Matty stopped in his tracks. As Phoenix reached the gate, the voice's owner came into view. An exceptionally old man stood in the booth, his moustache quivering as he looked out at both of them. After a few seconds of silence, he let out a deep breath that sent his moustache fluttering at its length.

"Feh. What're you kids doing here?" he asked, putting on a pair of dark glasses.

"... Good morning." Phoenix said hesitantly. There was a concern in the back of her mind that this old man might not be the most patient around. "My name is Phoenix Wright. I'm an attorney. This," she motioned toward Matty, who seemed to be on the verge of running off into the studio by himself, "is my assistant, Matty Fey."

The guard looked both of them over again. "Feh. Lawyers. I should've known. You an' yer 'New Age' clothes. Bunch of hippies and weirdoes."

"Uh... Sir, could we get into the studio?" Matty asked.

"GET INTO THE-" the guard suddenly exploded, confirming Phoenix's theory. "YOU KIDS THESE DAYS, TAKING EVERYTHING FER GRANTED, NEVER CONSIDERING THE-" his budding rant was interrupted by a series of hacking coughs.

"Er... Do you need some-" Phoenix began, concerned that the guard might collapse.

"I'M-... FINE-!" He sounded anything but fine, but the guard's coughing fit subsided after several seconds. He cleared his throat, and his moustache finally settled. "Now... gah... what'd you kids want?"

Phoenix and Matty shared the briefest of confused glances.

"Uh... We have a note here from Wanda Powers. We need to get into the studio for an investigation." Phoenix said, setting the note on the booth's counter. The guard looked it over.

"All right." he grunted, reaching beneath the counter. He produced two passes and handed them to Phoenix and Matty. "These're signed by me, so they'll get yeh in."

He extended a weathered hand to Phoenix. "Name's Oldbag. Weston Oldbag." he turned sharply toward Matty as the latter failed to suppress a snicker. "Yeh can laugh all yeh want, son, but the Oldbag name carries a certain respect! My father was an Oldbag through and through, just like his father before him, and-"

Oldbag continued his tirade for quite some time, seeming not to notice as Phoenix and Matty took off at a run into the studio.

* * *

_Gaaaah _

_I wrote this entire chapter from my tablet while on vacation, so it was pretty slow going. Nevertheless, there's our setup for case three._


	10. Dead Ends

**October 16th, 12:06 PM**

**Global Studios**

**Main Lot**

"Y'know, Matty," Phoenix remarked as her assistant tore around the studio lot, "if I didn't know any better, I'd think that you weren't actually interested in investigating the case. Matty stopped.

"Well, Phoenix," he said with a masterfully sarcastic flair, "_I _would've thought that a _brilliant _lawyer like you would've known to always investigate as thoroughly as possible."

Phoenix rolled her eyes as Matty resumed his exploration. Aside from her, very little was stopping Matty from exploring the studio to his heart's content; there were very few police officers around, as the investigation was nearing its end. The few that _had_ approached them had been satisfied by Phoenix presenting them with her badge and security pass.

She approached a nearby information booth and was unfolding a studio map when Matty joined her at the booth.

"They got anything cool in there?" he asked, standing on his toes to inspect the booth's interior.

"I'm not letting you steal anything just because there aren't any employees around." Phoenix chided, opening the map. Just as Matty began to examine it, a voice sounded from behind them.

"Aww, man, you two again?" Phoenix and Matty turned to face the speaker. Detective Gumshoe was trudging toward them, police records book still in hand.

"Hey, Detective!" Matty called out. Both Phoenix and Gumshoe looked at him in surprise.

(I would've expected Matty to be a bit more reserved, seeing as Gumshoe tried to have him convicted of a murder just a month ago...)

"Uh... Hey, kid." Gumshoe said uncertainly, stopping in front of him. Matty offered a hand, which she hesitantly shook.

Phoenix was just unpinning her badge from her chest when Gumshoe barked, "Yeah, don't tell me. You're Powers' attorney, right?"

"You really get a kick outta showing that thing off, don'tcha?" Matty quipped as Phoenix reattached her badge.

"Ya oughta get yourself somethin' like _my_ badge." Gumshoe added, "Or even like Ms. Edgeworth's. Much nicer lookin'."

"_Speaking of,_" Phoenix said loudly, eager to change the subject, "is Edgeworth going to be prosecuting over the trial tomorrow?"

"Yep. She was real determined to do it." Gumshoe replied. "She's been pretty put off ever since she lost to you last month. Still winnin' her trials, mind, but she's been pretty irritable since then. Just be glad you didn't see her right after your trial; I've never seen her so angry. Stormed right up to her office and locked the door for hours."

(Yikes... She must've taken losing her record pretty badly...)

"Anyway, I'll be pokin' around this area mostly, so you two can go and check out whatever ya need to. Gimme a shout if anythin' happens." Gumshoe finished, walking past them and toward the main gate. Phoenix and Matty returned their attention to the map.

"OK, looks like the trailer where Ms. Hammer was killed is over _there_..." Phoenix mumbled.

"Found, you mean." Matty interjected.

"What?"

"Mic told me once that in a lot of his cases, somebody moved the body after killing the guy. Makes it easier to frame someone else sometimes." Matty explained.

"... That's a good point, actually. Nice one, Matty." Phoenix said, ruffling her assistant's hair. He smiled.

"I try, Boss."

"... Still, you really think anyone would move the body when it was in that big, awkward costume?" Phoenix asked. Matty shrugged.

"I dunno. If it made it easier to frame the Samurai, then maybe. I guess we oughta check the Magistrate's trailer first, anyway." he said.

"Good plan."

After a pause, Matty added, "Jeez, that sounds weird. The villainous Evil Magistrate, livin' in a camper van."

**October 16th, 12:25 PM**

**Global Studios**

**Hammer's Personal Trailer**

"Maaaan..." Matty exclaimed as he pushed open the trailer door. "This trailer _sucks_."

Stepping inside after him, Phoenix found it hard to disagree. Looking beyond the police tape, the trailer was an unbelievable mess. Hammer's various possessions and articles of clothing were scattered at random across the floor and furniture. On a countertop, there were several unfinished meals, which were steadily attracting flies. Overall, it wasn't making Phoenix very eager to investigate.

"Doesn't seem like Ms. Hammer cared all that much about quality living conditions..." she jibed, carefully stepping over and around the many items strewn across the floor.

"This is kinda killing my respect for the Magistrate as a villain, honestly..." Matty responded.

What followed was a thoroughly detestable half-hour of digging through and examining the trailer's entire contents. Once they agreed to give up, both Phoenix and Matty left the trailer feeling rather badly in need of a shower.

"Well, _on the positive side," _Matty said dully, "we never have to go back in there."

"... Don't pretend there's a positive side to this..." Phoenix groaned. Once they reached the main pathway, she unfolded the map again.

"What's the closest place to here?" Matty asked.

Scanning over the map, Phoenix replied, "Studio Two, it looks like. We'll pass by the path to Studio One on the way over, but Two is a shorter walk."

"Cool. Studio Two it is, then."

* * *

On the trip to their destination, Matty was unusually quiet.

"Something wrong, Matty?" Phoenix asked after a particularly long period of silence.

"Hm-? O-oh, it's nothing," Matty said distractedly, "I've just been thinking."

Phoenix was tempted to jokingly respond with "That's a first" or something to that effect, but in light of her remaining caution about Matty's emotional stability, she thought it might come off a bit harsh. Instead, she merely asked, "About what?"

"Nothin' about the case. I'm just kinda worried that they're gonna cancel The Steel Samurai because of what happened."

(Oh. Should've figured.)

"They can always just recast the character." Phoenix said.

"I guess." Matty said. He suddenly caught sight of something down the pathway. "What's that-?"

Phoenix looked ahead. Where the map indicated the entrance to the Studio One pathway, there seemed to be a fallen tree and a broken mess of wooden boards. Someone was pacing to and fro in front of the mess.

"Hey! What's up with the path?" Matty called out, speeding up his pace. The person turned as they approached.

"Oh! I'm sorry, I didn't know anyone was allowed in today." he said. He was a freckled and brown-haired boy in glasses, looking to be about Matty's age and height. He gestured to the wreckage behind him. "A tree went down last night. It took down the Studio One sign and completely blocked off the pathway."

"Looks like it made one hell of a mess." Matty commented.

"Yep. I've just been inspecting it before we do anything."

"You work here, then?" Phoenix inquired.

"Yep. I'm Pryce Nichols. I'm a studio assistant." the boy answered. He took another look at the collapsed sign. "Looks like I'm gonna have to call it in and get the maintenance guys on it ASAP. Studio One's where we keep all the vehicles." he detached a radio from his belt and was about to switch it on when he looked back up at Phoenix. "I forgot to ask. What're you guys doing here?"

"My name's Phoenix Wright. He's Matty Fey. We're Wanda Powers' legal team." Phoenix said, ignoring Matty's muttered comment as she flashed her badge.

"WP has a lawyer?" Pryce asked in surprise. "When did that happen?"

At the exact same moment, Matty repeated, "WP?" and Phoenix asked, "Is that unusual?" All three briefly exchanged a confused glance before Pryce answered.

"Yeah. The producer doesn't normally let actors hire lawyers for work-related business." he said. "Mind you, _he's_ got one, but usually, when an actor or assistant gets in legal trouble, he just fires them and lets them solve it themselves. It's a stipulation in the contract."

Phoenix was surprised. "Is he really that bad about it? I mean, that's sounds like it's practically breaking the law."

Pryce was about to answer when Matty exclaimed, "Ohhhhh!" Both looked at him in confusion. There was a decidedly awkward pause. "Oh, sorry. I just got the 'WP' thing. Wanda Powers, right?"

Pryce nodded. "Anyway, don't let him know I said this, but the producer is a pretty nasty piece of work. He's basically in control of the entire operation here. Even stuff he shouldn't be involved in."

"How does he get away with that? There must be legal problems _somewhere_." Phoenix said.

Pryce hesitated. He took a quick glance up and down the pathway, Satisfied with its vacancy, he leaned closer to Phoenix. "You didn't hear this from me," he whispered, "but I've heard that he's got some, uh... 'connections', we'll call them. Dangerous ones. Helps him stay out of trouble with the law."

Phoenix blanched. "I... I don't suppose you'd want to go into detail about those connections, would you?"

Pryce considered it. "I shouldn't. This job's not worth that much risk."

"Alright. Thanks for the info, anyway."

"Sure thing. Now," Pryce switched his radio on, "I should get to calling this in. Nice talking to you, Ms. Wright, Mr. Fey." he gave them a quick wave as they turned down the pathway to Studio Two. As they walked away, they heard him say, "Hey, it's Pryce. I'm over at the intersection for Studios One and Two. Looks like a tree went down last night. Smashed the Studio One sign, and took down the power line... Yeah, killed all the power to Studio One."

Shortly before they reached the gate for Studio Two, Matty spoke up.

"I like that 'WP' thing. Y'know what, Boss? I need a nickname for you. Something understated, though, Don't want you to sound stuck-up or anything." he said, never seeming to stop for breath. Phoenix chuckled.

"You got any ideas, then?" she asked.

"... Nix." Matty said after a lengthy pause. "Y'know, like, 'nix that'? How's that sound?"

Laughing, Phoenix answered, "Lex used to call me that in high school. Always bugged the hell outta me."

"Really? Why didn't you like it?"

"Ehh, I dunno. She liked it 'cuz it was so close to 'Lex'. I just thought it sounded kinda weird, I guess." Phoenix answered. Without thinking, she added, "Sounds alright when you say it, though."

Matty stopped. He smirked as Phoenix turned to check on him. "You _sure_ we aren't dating?" he asked, forcing himself not to laugh. Phoenix's face turned slightly red, but she grinned.

"You remember what happened last time..." she teasingly warned, turning back toward the gate.

**October 16th, 1:09 PM**

**Global Studios**

**Studio Two**

Much like their previous location, there was little of any importance to see in Studio Two. The lot was large, but empty for the most part, offering only a bit of insight into the studio's prop design philosophy. There was an abrupt argument about the fine distinctions between stepladders and ordinary ladders at one point in their nearly hour-long search of the lot, but nothing else reaching the rank of "interesting" came up.

"I don't wanna sound negative, Matty, but..."

"No, no, by all means, speak your mind." Matty interrupted tonelessly. It was apparent that the lack of results was wearing on his patience just as much as it was Phoenix's.

"Alright, then. This is starting to feel like a waste of time." Phoenix said.

"Only starting?"

"... OK, maybe it started a while back." Phoenix admitted.

"Well, we should be alright, anyway. You can just do your usual lawyer thing tomorrow."

"My... lawyer thing?" Phoenix repeated. "Mind telling me what that is?"

"Y'know, the thing where you just make stuff up and stall 'til the witness screws up." Matty said.

(...)

"Thanks for the generous appraisal." Phoenix said, cuffing him over the back of the head.

**-click-**

"... What was that?" Matty asked, turning around to find the source of the noise as he rubbed the spot Phoenix had struck. Phoenix looked as well. A row of poorly trimmed shrubs lined a garden box along the studio wall, marking the area that the sound seemed to have originated from.

"... Somebody there?" she called out. After a moment, two of the shrubs rustled, and someone emerged from between them. It was a girl that Phoenix guessed to be about nine or ten. She wore a Steel Samurai shirt, and held a digital camera.

"What were you doing back there?" Phoenix asked.

Rather than answering, the girl started giggling and held out her camera, screen-first. Phoenix and Matty moved closer to examine it. On the screen was a photo taken just a few seconds earlier. It showed Phoenix midway through the act of striking the back of Matty's head. Matty's face was scrunched up in a wince.

"Heh... your face looks funny when your girlfriend hits you." the girl managed to say before dissolving back into her giggling fit. Phoenix gave her best effort not to laugh as Matty's face reddened. Suddenly, the girl pulled back her camera and ran back into the bushes.

"Hey-!" Matty chased the girl into the row of shrubs and vanished. A few seconds later, his head emerged above them. "She's gone!" he said in disbelief.

"What? She was only gone for two seconds!" Phoenix said. She followed him into the shrub.

"Y'see? Nothing!" Matty said. He wasn't wrong. The entire small area behind the shrubs was empty. His gaze stopped on something behind Phoenix. She turned. An open drain was set into the wall at ground level.

"You don't think she-?"

Matty stooped down by the drain. "Yep. I nearly fit into it. She wouldn't have any problem. Looks like this drain is a clear path all the way across the studio."

"You're kidding..."

As Matty stood back up, a loose branch snagged onto his sleeve. "Whoa-!" he yelped, falling backwards.

"Matty..." Phoenix groaned, shuffling past the bushes toward him.

"Ow... Gonna need some help here..." he said. His channeling robes were now thoroughly tangled amongst the many small twigs and branches of the shrub. Phoenix took hold of several to pull one of Matty's arms free. "Thanks..." he said, tugging at his other sleeve. A particularly stubborn branch held his shoulders in place. Phoenix gave an aggressive pull at it, and while Matty managed to pull himself free, the upper half of his robes slipped off of him and remained stuck.

"Dammit..." Phoenix whispered. Matty carefully turned around to assist her in detaching the garment from the shrub. After several careful seconds spent trying not to tear the fabric, it came free. Phoenix and Matty stumbled out of the row of bushes.

"Thanks, Nix..." Matty mumbled, tossing the robes back onto his shoulders. He suddenly froze as he looked up.

"What-" Phoenix began, freezing as well as she turned around. Detective Gumshoe was standing by the studio gate, her mouth slightly agape. Phoenix took a moment to imagine the scene from Gumshoe's perspective. She and Matty had just emerged from behind a row of bushes, both covered in twigs and leaves, with Matty shirtless...

(Oh, _God..._)

"Is, uh... this a bad time, you two?" Gumshoe asked blankly, her book hanging loosely from her hands. Both Phoenix and Matty blushed madly and jumped about a foot away from each other as if the other was on fire.

"N-no, it's j-just a-" Matty sputtered.

"T-there was a-" Phoenix choked; words didn't seem interested in forming properly for her. Fortunately, they were saved as she spotted the camera girl pushing out from behind another bush on the side of the pathway behind Gumshoe. "Over there-!" she managed, pointing a finger. Gumshoe turned just in time to see the girl just before she vanished around the corner.

"H-hey! Hold up a sec, kid!" she shouted, taking off after the girl. Matty pulled his robes on properly, and he and Phoenix followed the detective.

* * *

They found Gumshoe a short distance away from the wreckage of the Studio One sign.

(Looks like she caught up with that kid...)

Gumshoe was stooping down in front of the girl, who stood with her camera behind her back, smiling cheekily.

"There y'are, Ms. Wright," she said as Phoenix approached. "You know this kid?"

"Only since five minutes ago." Phoenix answered. "We found her hiding in the bushes over by the studio gate."

"She was taking pictures of us." Matty added with mild disdain.

"Only _one._" the girl chirped. Gumshoe gave Phoenix a slightly suspicious look.

"Uh... Just outta curiosity, Ms. Wright... what exactly were you two, uh... _doing_ in that picture?" she asked quietly, likely hoping that the girl wouldn't hear. A moment passed before Matty burst out laughing and Phoenix blushed again.

"J-just... uh..."

(Shit, this looks just plain _wrong..._)

"The lady was hitting her boyfriend on the head!" the girl piped up, holding up her camera, which still displayed the photo. Gumshoe jerked back in surprise when she spoke. 'Then they both chased me into the bushes."

"O-oh... right. That's, uh... That's fine. Thanks, sweetie."

Giving a huge sigh of relief, Phoenix mouthed, "Thank you" to the girl.

"Now, uh..." Gumshoe seemed quite distracted by the direction the conversation had gone in, "What was your name, hun?" she asked the girl.

"_Clee_-o." the girl answered in an almost painfully cute singsong tone, drawing out the "e" for at least a full second.

"Cleo, huh? Ya got a last name?"

"It's Hackins." Cleo answered sweetly.

"OK, Cleo. Can you tell me what you're here in the studio for?" Gumshoe continued with a warm smile.

"I like to take pictures of The Steel Samurai and everybody." Cleo answered, presenting her camera.

"OK. Just a few more questions. How'd you get in here?"

Cleo giggled. "That's easy. The drains are all really big, so I can get in through them."

"Huh. Alright. One more. Do your parents know you're here? 'Cuz I'll have to take you back home either way, but we might need to call them first."

"Oh, that's OK. I just live across the street, so they let me come here all the time."

Gumshoe looked off to the side for a moment, frowning, but when she turned back to Cleo, she was smiling again. "OK, hun. I'll just walk you back, then." she said. She stood up and offered Cleo a hand. Cleo took it after tucking her camera into her pocket. "Follow us, would ya, Ms. Wright? I needed to talk to ya about somethin'." the detective murmured to Phoenix.

* * *

When they reached the gate, Oldbag the guard was relaxing in his chair. He gave a start as they passed.

"Hmm-...? Feh. So, this one's yers, is she?" he barked, staring at Cleo and Gumshoe.

"Actually, Mr. Old-"

"I SHOULDA GUESSED, YOU INVESTIGATIVE TYPES, ALWAYS DRAGGING SOME KID ALONG TO-" Oldbag's rant was again cut off as he began to cough violently, his moustache blowing around wildly.

"We oughta get going..." Matty said. Phoenix and Gumshoe both gave muttered agreements and the group departed.

They returned to the main lot after dropping Cleo off at her house.

"I'm gonna have to tell the studio staff about how she's been getting in..." Gumshoe said. "Later, mind." she added; Oldbag had still been in a huff when they passed back through the entrance.

"Right. Now, you said you wanted to talk about something?" Matty asked.

"Two things now, actually. Firstly, I wanted to check up on how your search was goin'."

"Poorly." Phoenix said bluntly. After a moment, she asked, "Why are you concerned about how we're doing, though? You're technically against us in the trial, aren't you?"

Gumshoe hesitated. "Well, a while back, I wouldn't've been, but a few things changed after the trial last month." she said, sounding more serious than before.

"How so?"

"Well... to tell ya the truth, it's not just Ms. Edgeworth that was pretty rattled by how the trial turned out." Gumshoe answered. "Because we tried somebody who turned out to be definitively innocent, there was an inquiry in the Prosecutor's Office. See, it hurts the integrity of the force when somethin' like that happens, not to mention the morale."

Phoenix leaned aside in thought. "That makes sense. Especially since Edgeworth's never lost a trial before, right?"

"Exactly. It definitely didn't help with all the rumours goin' around about her, either. People who think-... well, _less than highly_ of Ms. Edgeworth's methods used it as an excuse to attack her rep a bit more, y'see. That, and... honestly..." she trailed off, suddenly looking downcast. She sighed before continuing, "Honestly, I've been findin' it a lot harder to trust her ever since."

"I'm... sorry, Detective." Phoenix offered.

"Don't be." Gumshoe said, looking directly at her. "It's just... I've been assigned to nearly every case Ms. Edgeworth has ever worked on. We've always been really confident in her cases, but... after you both got off the hook last month, she didn't react like I expected. Sure, she was angry, and I definitely saw that coming, but... well, when I finally asked her about it, she talked about it like it was some kind of scam. Like you'd set the whole thing up just to damage her reputation."

Hearing this, Phoenix was shocked. "Really? She was _that_ distraught?"

"You bet. We got into a pretty huge argument about it, and she kicked me outta her office. I didn't hear from her for a week or two afterward. She didn't contact me again until this case came up. Apparently, she'd taken a case during the time since our argument, and it helped her get over it."

Phoenix frowned. "I guess another guilty verdict would do that..." she said sourly.

"That's what I'm concerned about, Ms. Wright." Gumshoe said earnestly.

The trio was silent for a short while, all of them reflecting on the conversation.

"... Anyway, on an unrelated note," Gumshoe finally said, breaking the silence, "as for the other thing I wanted to discuss," she turned to Matty, "How old are you again, kid?"

Matty looked confused, but answered, "Seventeen.".

Gumshoe laughed. "In that case, it's a good thing Cleo vouched for ya earlier, then, Ms. Wright. I would've hated to have to arrest ya for sexual assault against a minor."

Once again, Matty broke down laughing as Phoenix blushed deeply red, holding her head in her hands.

**October 16th, 5:26 PM**

**Phoenix Wright's Apartment**

Morale was low as Phoenix and Matty arrived home. The investigations that followed their chat with Gumshoe had failed to turn out any more eventful than the first two. Overall, their plans and strategy for the trial had not yet materialized, and neither of them felt much inclination to carry on with their search.

"Still feeling good about that 'lawyer thing', Matty?" Phoenix asked lethargically, dragging her feet as they approached the apartment door. Matty gave a noncommittal grunt. He shuffled ahead to unlock the door.

"... Damn... Nix, I think I left my key inside this morning. Toss me yours, would'ya?"

"_'Nix'_? I didn't just hear that, did I?" a familiar voice barked from the stairwell. Phoenix stopped.

"... Lex? What're you doing here?" she asked.

"I thought you two weren't working today, so I decided I'd swing by once I was off work. You didn't answer, though, and I was about to leave when I saw you pull in." Lexine answered, pushing off of the wall she had been leaning on. "Now, when did you start liking people calling you 'Nix'? Last I checked, you hated it."

"... You wanna have this conversation, you wait 'til we're inside." Phoenix said, handing Matty her key.

"Let's get on that, then..." Matty mumbled, opening the door.

"Why, thank ya, Matty." Lexine drawled, following them inside.

Matty was moving toward the fridge when Lexine darted in front of him.

"Hold on there. I'm not just gonna drop in on ya without doin' somethin' nice." she said, flipping open her cell phone. "I'll get us a pizza." Matty muttered a thank-you and left for the living room. He dropped onto the couch, next to Phoenix. They didn't speak, leaving the room quiet until Lexine finished her phone call.

"Aaahh..." she loudly sighed, flopping down on the other end of the couch. "Nice night, innit? You two can come home from work and cozy up on the couch for-" she stopped as Matty limply punched her shoulder. "What was that? C'mon, Matty, if you're gonna punch me, don't half-ass it. Really just let me hav-"

-**WHAM-**

"Ow... nice one." she said; Phoenix had leaned over Matty's head and given her jaw a proper punch.

"... Thanks, Boss." Matty said.

"So, it's 'Boss' again? What happened to 'Nix'?" Lexine asked immediately.

Phoenix groaned. "I was hoping Matty wouldn't say it around you, but I don't have the heart to hit him when he's this tired."

"Aww, why would ya wanna hit him?" Lexine went on in her best teasing tone. "It's so cute when couples give each other little pet names and-" she stopped, seeing the exhaustion in Phoenix's glare. "Alright, I'll give ya a break. What were you guys up to all day, anyway? Haven't seen you this tired in ages."

"We were at Global Studios." Phoenix answered with a thankful smile. "Wanda Powers, the actress who plays the Steel Samurai, was arrested for killing another actress, and Matty insisted that we defend her."

"Wanda Powers? No way! She'd never-"

"I've heard." Phoenix cut in, gesturing toward Matty, who was beginning to droop.

"Right. So, you were there all day? Tell me you found something, at least."

"'fraid not. We checked damn near every part of that studio, and we couldn't find _anything_. We'll have to wing it in the trial tomorrow."

"_Shit_..." Lexine mumbled. "Well, things looked pretty bad in the trial last month, right? You still pulled through _that_." she said hopefully. Phoenix shrugged.

"Whatever happens happens."

Their conversation stayed focused on the impending trial until the doorbell sounded. Matty jerked awake; sometime during the conversation, he had fallen asleep, his head drooping onto Lexine's shoulder.

"Nice to see you're still alive." she quipped. "That'll be the pizza."

She got up from the couch and left the room. Matty turned to Phoenix.

"... Hey, Boss?" he said.

"Yeah?"

"I'm... sorry for getting us stuck like this." his voice was flat and devoid of energy.

Phoenix gave a sympathetic smile. "It's fine. We're not completely screwed yet. Just because we didn't find anything ourselves, doesn't mean we can't get some use out of what the police gathered."

"... Sure, Nix." Matty said with a tired smile.

Lexine returned a moment later, carrying a pizza box. "Sustenance arrives!" she proclaimed, dropping it onto the centre table.

"I wouldn't leave that so close to Matty, if I were you." Phoenix said, as her assistant seemed to perk up instantly.

"Not my fault she only ordered one." he said, throwing the lid off the box.

* * *

_Gaaahhhhh_

I had like, 80% of this chapter written up on my tablet and it was cool

_and then the file corrupted and raaaarrgghh_

_I was upset_

_so upset, in fact, that I wrote the whole damn thing again _

On a positive note, I'm back from vacation, so I have my computer back, meaning much faster writing speeds and no corruption

also I have undergone a name change and I am now the great MATT SUNSTON


	11. Rational Behaviour

**October 17th, 9:45 AM**

**District Court**

**Defendant Lobby No. 1**

"It's... not... _working..._" Matty grunted, his entire face contorted as he struggled to concentrate. His as of yet unsuccessful efforts at channeling his brother's spirit, (an idea that had occurred to him during the drive to the courthouse) had consumed the fifteen minutes that he and Phoenix had spent in the defendant lobby thus far. Phoenix was watching him, her mind struggling between impatience and sympathy.

Half of her mind rationalized his plan; Micah would certainly have a greater chance of assisting her against the odds they were facing, but at the same time, she wondered if lacking Matty's own assistance might damage her composure. The latter seemed to be a particularly significant danger at the moment, as she kept catching herself hoping that he would give up the channeling attempt, if only so she would be able to feel the calming sense of balance that their interactions produced.

She was on the verge of cracking and interrupting Matty herself when the doors banged open. Wanda Powers stood in the doorway, looking nervous beyond compare and perhaps a mite embarrassed that her entrance had been so loud. The noise seemed to have greatly surprised Matty, as he gave a large jolt and lost his balance. Were they not in such a tense situation, Phoenix would have laughed at his overreaction, but she instead approached the doors to speak with her client.

"Hello, Ms. Powers." she said, trying her best to look composed.

Powers, who was making no such effort, gave a rushed greeting and hastily moved to one of the benches.

"Did you go to the studio?" she asked after sitting down.

"We did." Phoenix said.

Matty had gotten off the floor, and he came over to the bench as well. "It wasn't a very useful visit, though." he added, dusting off his robes.

"So, you couldn't find anything, then?"

"I'm afraid not," Phoenix said, "but don't worry. There's bound to be something we can use in the prosecution's case."

Matty recognized her tone; Phoenix wasn't even remotely confident in their chances, but she could hardly tell their client that.

Powers looked down at the floor in thought. "Be blunt with me, Ms. Wright." she said after a pause. "How doomed am I?"

"Er..." Phoenix hadn't been expecting this kind of reaction.

There was a pause.

"Uh... Dead samurai walking." Matty offered.

There was a longer pause.

(... _Why_ did I let him answer?)

"_Thank you _for the vote of confidence, Matty." Phoenix groaned. She turned to Powers. "I'm sorry, Ms. Powers. I didn't want to be as, er... _direct _as Matty was, but he's right. We're basically flying blind going into this trial."

"No, it's fine, Ms. Wright." Powers attempted a smile, "I'd rather hear that than go in there with the wrong impression."

The doors opened again. "Ms. Wright, it's time for you and your client to enter the courtroom." said a grim-faced guard from the entrance.

**October 17th, 10:00 AM**

**District Court**

**Courtroom No. 4**

The gallery was nearly deafening. Reporters of every kind lined the seats, all discussing the rumours surrounding the case. The courthouse's regulations strictly prohibited recording devices, and as such, the many news staff were forced to limit themselves to taking pages worth of notes to prepare their reports.

The judge struck his gavel several times, but the noise was easily drowned out by the ongoing cacophony of voices. Phoenix watched as the judge gave orders to the bailiff, who scurried off into one of the courtroom's back doors. Seconds later, he returned carrying a microphone and hauling a speaker. He set the speaker down and held the mic up to the judge. This time, when he struck his gavel, the sound was clearly audible.

"-ahem- Court is now in session for the trial of Ms. Wanda Powers." he said with a hint of impatience once the gallery quieted down. Phoenix heard Matty stifling a laugh next to her.

"The prosecution, as ever, is ready, Your Honour." Edgeworth said.

"As is the defense, Your Honour." Phoenix said briskly.

(I can't show a single sign of weakness, or Edgeworth is gonna have us pinned down in minutes.)

"Very well. Ms. Edgeworth, you may give the court your opening statement."

"The prosecution intends to show the court that at approximately 8:15 on the night of October 15th, the defendant, Ms. Wanda Powers, killed her fellow actress Janine Hammer, in the latter's personal trailer at Global Studios. As will be demonstrated by the evidence, it is impossible for anyone else to have committed this crime." Edgeworth said. Her tone was one of calm but severe determination. As she finished her statement, her eyes locked with Phoenix's in an expressionless stare.

"I see. You may call upon your first witness."

Edgeworth instantly returned her focus to the court at large. "First, I will call a familiar face, Detective Gumshoe, to the stand."

Detective Gumshoe pushed through the side door and casually strolled toward the stand. She momentarily gave Phoenix and Matty a friendly smile before facing Edgeworth, presumably to do the same thing.

"Please state your full name and occupation."

"Debra Gumshoe, homicide detective." she said evenly.

"Detective, describe this case briefly, if you would."

"Right." she flipped through her records book and stopped at a page with a map printed on it. "This is a map of the Global Studios lot. On the side, here, we have the employee area. The trailers belonging to the actors are all parked there. The defendant's is right next to the victim's. During the course of the day on the 15th, the studio crew was working through a series of practices for various action scenes. The last one was in the evening, at around 7. They had a meal, and everyone left for the day. That is, everyone but the defendant and victim. Reportedly, they both returned to their trailers for their own reasons. The security guard working at the time was sent to check on them before finishing his shift, at about 8:25. That was when he found the victim, who was dead in her trailer, and the defendant, who was asleep in hers. The police were called, and the investigation team located the murder weapon, the Samurai Spear prop, lying on the floor of the victim's trailer."

During the explanation, Phoenix had taken down a small list of notes, most about the specific times mentioned.

"This is the most recent autopsy report for the victim." Gumshoe added, taking a stack of thin folders from under her book. The bailiff brought a copy to the defense bench.

* * *

"What's it say, Boss?" Matty asked.

"Let's see... time of death is 8:15 PM, cause of death was blood loss from a stab wound to the chest, victim reportedly went into shock immediately upon injury, but took a few minutes to actually die."

"Yikes..."

* * *

"Now, as the detective mentioned, a security guard was the first to discover the victim's body. I would like to call this guard to the stand." Edgeworth said.

(You're kidding...)

"This is gonna hurt, isn't it?" Matty groaned.

"Well, maybe it's not-"

The side door opened again and Oldbag slouched in, his moustache quivering as he took small glances around the room.

"Shoot me..." Matty said, rubbing his face wearily.

Oldbag took the stand, staring around the room with a frown. His dark glasses kept his eyes out of sight, but if the rest of his expression was any indication, he wasn't happy to be there.

"Witness, please state your-"

"So, it's you again, is it?" Oldbag snapped at Phoenix, completely ignoring Edgeworth. Phoenix didn't answer.

"Witness, your name and occupation, please."

"Just a minute! You just stay behind your little desk until I've had my say!" Oldbag shot back.

The judge shook his head. "Witness, it would be best for you to-"

"DON'T PATRONIZE ME, YOU SMARMY GOAT!" Oldbag exploded, sending his moustache fluttering at its length. "IT'S MY TAXES THAT PAY YER SALARY, AND-" he broke off, as usual, into a coughing fit.

"Er... Bailiff, would you bring the witness a lozenge or something of that-" the judge began when there was a lull in the volume of Oldbag's coughs.

"I DON'T -_HACK- _NEED YER DRUGS-! THAT'S -_HACK-_ THE PROBLEM WITH YOU YOUNG PEOPLE TODAY, THROWING TAX MONEY INTO WORTHLESS-" Oldbag's voice was blocked out by his coughs again.

"Is this man... your only witness, Ms. Edgeworth?" the judge asked at another gap in the noise.

"The police informed me that, most regrettably, he is, Your Honour." Edgeworth answered, her elbow resting on the bench and her hand massaging her forehead.

Phoenix, meanwhile, could only manage, (He's calling the judge "young"?)

After a prolonged bout of wheezing, Oldbag finally stopped, leaning against the stand for support.

"Now..." Edgeworth growled, having already thrown all composure out the window, "Your name and occupation, witness."

"Name's... _gah... _Weston Oldbag..." he cleared his throat loudly and stood upright, "Security guard for Global Studios."

"You were patrolling the studio on the day of the murder, correct?" the judge asked cautiously.

"That's right."

"Then, would you please describe for us the events surrounding your discovery of the crime?" he asked. Rather than saying anything to Phoenix, he only gave her a nod, most likely hoping to keep Oldbag's attention away from her for a bit longer.

"... Alright. I arrived at work at 1 PM on the day of the murder. I was a bit late, but everyone was so busy that it didn't seem to matter. Those fool actresses were doing some sort of practice, and they didn't finish until about 7:30 that evening. Once they finished their staff meal, they were all finished for the day. I was signing everyone out of the studio afterward, but two people were missing."

"Ms. Hammer and Ms. Powers?" Phoenix inquired.

"Yes. The director told me that they were still in their trailers, so I went to check on them. My shift was over at 8:30, and I wasn't about to let those two talentless floozies cost me my-"

"Objection!" Phoenix shouted as Edgeworth buried her forehead in her hands again. "The witness is slandering my client, Your Honour!" (Gotta play for any advantage...)

"Hmm. It isn't strictly related to this case, but I'll sustain it. Witness, I will have to ask you to refrain from including personal bias in your account of the events." the judge said.

"Feh..." Oldbag muttered something under his breath and continued, "Fine. I left for the trailers at 8:20. I didn't hear anything from Hammer when I knocked, so I went into the trailer, and there she was, on the ground."

"Hold it!" Phoenix interrupted, "Did you... know that it was Ms. Hammer immediately?"

"... Boss, does that actually matter?" Matty asked quietly.

"Of course I did." snapped Oldbag. "She was still in that idiotic costume."

"That's... the Evil Magistrate costume, isn't it?" asked the judge.

"Yes, that affront to fashion. Although, I can't say I expect much better out of the studio's clothing department, given what's happened to standards,"

"Incoming rant..." Phoenix groaned.

This time, Oldbag erupted into a furious tirade about the apparent decline of costume quality in recent decades. To the great dismay of everyone else in the courtroom, he for once seemed unhindered by his recurring cough.

"AND ON TOP OF THAT, IT'S CARRIED OVER INTO BUSINESS, AS WELL! YOU ONLY NEED TO LOOK AS FAR AS THIS ROOM TO SEE THAT, WHAT WITH THE SHAMEFUL BUNCH OF RAGS THIS DEFENSE ATTORNEY IS WEARING,"

Phoenix didn't bother to object.

(It's not like anyone but Matty would hear me, anyway...)

"-DISGRACE TO EVERYTHING THE CLOTHING INDUSTRY ONCE STOOD FOR, NOT EVEN REMOTELY INTERESTED IN BEING MODERN, JUST THROWING ON WHATEVER'S THERE,"

Judging by how Edgeworth's expression was now completely obscured as she dug her face into her hands, she was deeply and rightly regretting having ever called Oldbag to the stand.

"-NOT LIKE THE PROSECUTOR THERE, MIND YOU, SHE CLEARLY UNDERSTANDS WHAT'S NORMAL IN TODAY'S SOCIETY-"

(_Edgeworth, cravat and all, is "modern" to this guy!?_)

Mercy finally came as the judge switched the bailiff's microphone back on and struck his gavel several times.

"Witness! If you cannot adhere to the behavioural standards of this courtroom, you will be removed and face charges!" he said firmly as Oldbag finally ceased his rant.

Oldbag considered this for a few seconds, looking as if he still had quite a bit more to say.

"Feh. Alright. Where were we?"

"You found the victim on the floor of her trailer." Edgeworth growled, well beyond the limits of her patience.

"Good girl. Now, I found Hammer there, and I thought to check on Powers as well. I couldn't just call the police until I knew the whole story. When I went to the other trailer, Powers was asleep on her couch. I didn't wake her up. Instead, I went back to the guard station to call the police."

Phoenix suspected that she wasn't the only one to sigh in relief as Oldbag finished his testimony without breaking off into another rant.

"Do you have any problems with this testimony, Ms. Wright?" the judge asked.

"Er... No, Your Honour." she said. (Things aren't looking too bad so far, actually.)

"Very well. Ms. Edgeworth, what more do you have for the court? We must accept that what this witness has told us is correct, but you have yet to conclusively tie the defendant to the murder."

"Of course, Your Honour." Edgeworth said, some of her usual composure returning. "The witness neglected to mention something rather vital in his testimony."

(Damn... Though, somehow, that doesn't surprise me.)

"Please explain this, then, witn-... er, Ms. Edgeworth, rather."

"Certainly. During the initial investigation, the police searched the studio's security station for footage that might help clear up the more ambiguous details surrounding the moment of the murder. The search produced this photo." Edgeworth drew a photo from beneath her bench as she finished speaking.

Phoenix lurched; the photo clearly displayed a figure in the Steel Samurai costume exiting Hammer's trailer.

"As can be seen from the photo's timestamp," Edgeworth went on, "the person seen in the photo left the victim's trailer at roughly 8:21, which indicates that they were there precisely on time to commit the murder."

"Objection!" Phoenix cut in. "That photo only shows the costume! It doesn't prove them to be Ms. Powers!"

"Of course, Wright. I haven't suggested anything of the sort." Edgeworth replied, a hint of smugness lacing her tone.

"Then what's she so happy about?" Matty quietly asked.

"Alongside the photo, we discovered a few seconds of footage that capture the same few seconds from another camera's position."

A large display screen set in front of the gallery lit up, displaying the video feed. The camera was slowly rotating, and as Hammer's trailer came into view for a second time, the unknown person wearing the costume could be clearly seen exiting and walking away from the trailer.

"That still can't prove-"

"Objection!" Edgeworth shouted. "Please allow me to finish my explanation before throwing out accusations, Wright." she said in her best condescending tone. "Now, as can be seen from this footage, the costumed individual is walking with a noticeable limp."

(What's this got to do with anything...?)

"Witness, I believe you have an explanation for this, correct?" Edgeworth finished, turning to the witness stand, where Oldbag was impatiently drumming his fingers.

"That's right." he confirmed, straightening up.

"Explain this then, witness." the judge said.

"As I mentioned earlier, I had been signing the staff out of the studio after the final practice was over. I talked to the director, who told me that Powers and Hammer had gone off to their trailers instead of coming to the gate."

"Hold it, please!" Phoenix said rather cautiously, worried about setting off another rant. "When you say, 'the staff', who did that include on that day?"

"The actors, extras, assistants, director, and producer." Oldbag answered stiffly.

"Alright. Continue."

"What I forgot to mention earlier was that the director told me that Powers had been injured at some point during the practice. She- the director, I mean,- thought that was why Powers had gone to her trailer instead of the exit."

"And this injury, witness, was...?" Edgeworth asked, no longer making any effort to hide her smugness.

"A sprained ankle, according to the director."

"Of course it was..." Matty groaned.

"Can anyone else attest to this?" Phoenix asked, hiding her sudden panic. "The producer, maybe?"

"Not him, no. He wasn't there for the practice." Oldbag said.

Edgeworth shook her head with a brief laugh. "Wouldn't it be best to ask Ms. Powers herself, Wright?"

Phoenix turned desperately to Powers, who hung her head sadly.

"I, uh... I did, Ms. Wright." she said apologetically.

Phoenix groaned. "Well... Ms. Powers' trailer isn't in the footage! There's no proof that whoever's in that video went there afterward-!" she said shakily.

"Ms. Edgeworth?" the judge inquired.

"Alas, Wright is correct." Edgeworth said, narrowly avoiding a tension-killing pun. "I cannot prove that the killer retired to Ms. Powers' trailer following the murder, but I do not believe that will be necessary. Given that the culprit is clearly seen limping in the footage, it can be safely assumed that it is Ms. Wanda Powers. That is, unless, you can prove otherwise, Ms. Wright?"

A sweat was building on Phoenix's neck. (Dammit... I've got nothing...)

"There is one thing that bothers me, actually." the judge interjected. Edgeworth turned.

"And that is, Your Honour?"

"Where is that Steel Samurai costume now?"

Edgeworth seemed to freeze up for a moment. "I... er, actually..." she cleared her throat, "We couldn't find it, Your Honour."

"Hmm. I'm afraid I must dismiss your suggestion then, Ms. Edgeworth, as it is still possible that there may have been someone else present at the crime scene. As long as any doubt remains, we cannot accept Ms. Powers' guilt as the only possibility."

(Did... Did the _judge _just save us...?)

Edgeworth went on undeterred. "In that case, allow me to remove any remaining doubt from your mind. Would the witness please continue his testimony?"

Oldbag grunted. "And here I was thinking you wouldn't need me up here anymore..." he muttered, standing upright again. "Nobody but the staff I've told you about was in the studio that day. Everybody but Powers and Hammer signed out just after the practice. That leaves them as the only ones still running around the employee area at the end of the day. Powers doesn't have an alibi now, does she?"

"Boss?" Matty asked quietly. "Something's not adding up here. Literally, I mean."

Phoenix was still fairly panicked, but her thoughts were composed enough for Matty's comment to stir something up in her mind. (Maybe I _can _still turn this around...)

"Hold it!" she shouted. "Let me make sure I have this all straightened out. What you're suggesting, Edgeworth, is that the defendant killed the victim at around 8:15, left the trailer in costume a few minutes later, and was found by the witness in her own trailer just a few short minutes afterward. Is that right?"

"That is correct." Edgeworth said, staring suspiciously at her.

"Don't you think it seems a bit unlikely that she could have managed that?"

"To be honest, Ms. Wright, I do not." Edgeworth said.

"Let me clarify. You're suggesting that, in the space of no more than five minutes, the defendant left the victim's trailer, disposed of the Steel Samurai costume effectively enough that neither you nor the police were able to locate it, and then returned to her own trailer for a nap, which, might I add, is a completely illogical thing to do when trying to avoid suspicion in a murder?"

Edgeworth was silent for a few seconds. "Gah-!" she suddenly choked.

"Well, Edgeworth?" Phoenix added, reveling in her long-awaited advantage. Edgeworth said nothing, her mind working furiously but failing to compose a retort. The gallery erupted into chatter.

"Order! Order! This is an excellent point Ms. Wright brings up." the judge said. "Ms. Edgeworth, do you have any counterargument?"

"No, Your Honour." she growled.

"Witness?"

Oldbag only gave an irritated grunt.

"Hmm. As it stands, I cannot bring this trial to a close. I hereby suspend the trial's proceedings. Court will reconvene tomorrow. In the meantime, I would like the defense and the prosecution to thoroughly investigate this new ambiguity. Court is adjourned!"

Phoenix and Matty gave nearly synchronized sighs of relief as the judge struck his gavel.

**October 17th, 11:28 AM**

**District Court**

**Defendant Lobby No. 1**

"That was a million times closer than it needed to be." Matty said as he followed Phoenix into the lobby.

"You've got that right." Phoenix agreed. She turned to Powers, who walked in after Matty. "Alright. Tell me, Ms. Powers. Were you really in your trailer when the murder happened?"

"I really was, Ms. Wright, honest. I went straight there after the staff dinner. I was going to take a nap for an hour or two and sign out with the night guard. We didn't have anything scheduled for the day after, so I could afford to change my schedule a bit." Powers said earnestly.

"Then who was the Steel Samurai in the security footage?" Matty asked. "Any idea?"

"Not that I can think of." Powers said. "I didn't see what anyone else did after the meal, since I was the first to leave. My costume was in my trailer beforehand, though. Anyone could have walked in and taken it while I was sleeping."

"Hmm... Even then, they wouldn't have had more than a few minutes to get out of there after killing Ms. Hammer. We'll have to look into everyone that could possibly have made it there right after the dinner. Who was there for the meal?"

"It was... me, Janine, the director, the producer, and an assistant named... Pryce, I think." Powers recited.

"OK. We met Pryce during our search yesterday, but we haven't talked to the producer or the director yet." Phoenix said. "Can you give me their names?"

"Sure. The director's name is Salina Manella. She's... not my favourite person in the world. You'll see what I mean when you talk to her. The producer is Dai Vasquez. He doesn't hang around the studio as much as you'd think, but I'd expect that he'll be around today, what with the police questioning everyone."

"Alright. Thanks, Ms. Powers. We'd better get moving if we're gonna have any chance of staying ahead of Edgeworth."

* * *

I have no excuse for the lateness of this chapter.

I'm disappointed in me and I'll just get to work on the next one.


	12. Spontaneity

**October 17th, 12:30 PM**

**Not Global Studios**

"Can I ask _why_ we haven't left yet?"

The question simply hung in the air for several dragging seconds. Matty's attention was still primarily focused on the half-finished burger in his hands -the third of its kind- and he was taking a disproportionately long time to consider his answer.

Finally, he set the burger down, wiped his mouth with a napkin, and cleared his throat.

"Nope."

Somehow, Phoenix didn't find herself surprised by the response. She sighed.

"In that case, is it unreasonable for me to remind you that we only have this afternoon left to solve this entire case?"

"Yep."

Another sigh. (At least he spared me the suspense...)

It wasn't as if Matty hadn't been enthusiastic about the investigation to begin with. On the contrary, he had been the one loudly plotting out an entire elaborate plan for the search during the drive toward the studio. However, this only lasted until their route took them past his favourite restaurant.

Thinking back, Phoenix wasn't sure why she had expected Matty to get through his lunch efficiently. After all, there were few things Matty took more seriously than food, or more specifically, burgers. To a self-proclaimed connoisseur of fast food such as Matty, the act of ordering and eating a meal from a cheap restaurant was not a simple process in the least, but rather, "a carefully measured routine to make sure they don't start cutting any corners", as he personally described it.

"They still have corners left?" Phoenix recalled responding with.

She would have been lying to claim that she wasn't hungry as well, however. She made no complaints when Matty pointed out that the trial's proceedings had already left them a few minutes late for lunch, but by this point, it seemed trivial considering the aggravating slowness with which her assistant was actually eating his food.

Finally, at roughly the 35 minute mark, which Phoenix would grudgingly admit _was a _significantly shorter time than average, Matty discarded his tray and stood up.

"Arright." he said energetically, as if he were somehow unaware of his partner's growing anxiety. "Let's go, we've gotta save the Steel Samurai!"

"Gladly." Phoenix deadpanned, heading for the door.

**October 17th, 12:52 PM**

**Global Studios**

**Main Gate**

"Tell me that old crank isn't back at the gate yet." Matty said as he followed a few steps behind Phoenix on the way toward the studio entrance. Phoenix glanced hopefully toward the security booth, but to her dismay, a very familiar pair of dark glasses was staring back.

"Well, I'd love to be able to tell you that, but..." she began.

"_Objectioooonnnnn_..." Matty groaned.

"You two _again_?" Oldbag barked from the booth. "Don't any of you kids have homes these days?"

Phoenix beat down to urge to remind him of the rather obvious reason for their presence. She and Matty passed through the gate without a word. Oldbag managed about two syllables of loud protest before his usual coughing fit struck.

"So, where to first?" Phoenix asked once they were well out of earshot.

Surprisingly, it seemed that the extended lunch break had not caused Matty to forget his plans. "Well, like I said back in the car, we oughta track down the director and producer first." he answered.

"Right. The police might be questioning them right now, though, so I guess we should just check over the whole place until we find one of them."

The main lot was vacant, as the police were redoubling their efforts in searching the area around the trailer lot.

"I'd rather not run into Edgeworth right now, to be honest." Phoenix said, making for the path to Studios One and Two.

The walk was about as quiet as it had been the previous day, but Phoenix didn't seem to notice; she was once again preoccupied, running through everything she knew about the case in her head.

"Looks like they cleared that giant mess outta the way." Matty piped up, grabbing her attention. It seemed he was right; the majority of the debris was gone, leaving only a few broken tree branches scattered around the edges of the path. "You think we oughta check out Studio One?"

Phoenix considered it. "Well... that assistant from the other day _did _say that the path was open until the same night as the murder, so I guess it's worth looking into."

"Cool. There's gotta be _something_ worth seeing in this studio." Matty said, taking a head start down the pathway.

**October 17th, 1:24 PM**

**Global Studios**

**Studio One**

"Huh." Phoenix said, looking around the lot in surprise.

Studio One was hardly worth calling a 'studio', now that she saw it for herself. The lot was relatively small, and occupied only by a few company trucks and a rundown building.

"Uh... ignore what I said earlier. Strike it from the record, or whatever." Matty said, turning back toward the footpath.

"Hold it." Phoenix cut in, taking a hold of his collar. "We still need to check the place out."

"Fine..."

* * *

Mercifully, a smaller and more vacant area meant a shorter and less aggravating search. It took only a few minutes to thoroughly inspect the row of trucks parked in the lot, so as they approached the small building in the corner, Phoenix and Matty were still enjoying an upbeat conversation.

"See, the show hits a delicate balance of strong writing and great choreography." Matty said as part of his effort to explain the appeal of The Steel Samurai to Phoenix.

"Hang on, _strong writing?_" Phoenix repeated. "So, what I heard from yesterday's episode was...?"

"Ohhh, you must mean the new villain. They haven't revealed his name yet, but he's from the distant Klih-Shae Empire, where the royal family speaks in entirely 80s and 90s catchphrases." Matty explained, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"... _I should've guessed_." Phoenix said. "Now," she reached for the front doors of the building, "tell me this is unlock- aaaand it's not."

"Hmm. That sucks." Matty replied. Without another word, he moved over to a nearby window.

"Shouldn't we just ask for a key...?" Phoenix asked, watching him struggle with the window frame.

"Nah, this'll be-" he pulled up against the battered frame, "much... faster..."

With a small cracking sound, the window popped open. Matty turned back to Phoenix. "'sides, you really wanna go ask that old fart out front for another favour?"

"Point taken."

A few seconds after Matty had disappeared through the open window, the front door swung open. The building's interior was easily the most interesting part of Studio One. The walls were covered in bulletin boards, which were in turn decked with posters and charts displaying artwork and what Phoenix assumed to be notes from the production staff's brainstorming sessions. There was also a table in the centre of the room with a few chairs scattered around it.

"Aw, cool!" Matty said, staring at a brightly coloured picture. "It's got a bunch of concept art for the Samurai from before the show started!"

Phoenix smirked. (Better not interrupt Matty while he's going fanboy.)

Initially, it didn't appear that she would be likely to find anything helpful in the small room, but something caught her eye as she passed by the front doors again. One of the poster boards nearest to the doorway was hanging at a slant, as if it had been knocked off centre at some point. Upon closer inspection, she noticed a sizeable dent in the board itself as well as the walls surrounding it.

(Maybe someone got into a fight in here...?)

Her train of thought was interrupted a few seconds later, as Matty said, "Boss, there's someone coming into the lot."

As Phoenix looked up, Matty added, "It's that assistant from the other day."

Sure enough, shortly afterward, the doors opened again, and Pryce Nichols entered the room. He looked distracted, and jumped when he noticed Phoenix and Matty.

"Gah-! ... Jeez, you two scared me." he said. After a pause, he asked, "How'd you get in here, anyway?"

"Uh..." Matty began.

"Wasn't locked." Phoenix lied.

"... Really? Don't tell Mr. Vasquez that. He'd fire me in two seconds." Pryce said. His reason for being there seemed to return to him, and he added, "It's good that I found you, though. There was a detective looking for you. I said I'd check around."

"A detective? Was this detective a redhead woman?"

"Yeah. I dunno what she wanted from you, though."

"Hmm. We'd better track her down, then." Phoenix said.

"Wait, wait. D'you know where the director and producer are?" Matty asked.

Pryce thought for a moment. "No idea about Ms. Manella, but Mr. Vasquez was talking to the police last time I saw him. Everybody's supposed to meet up here soon. You should able to talk to them then."

(First good news I've heard all day.)

The doors opened for a third time. This time, an unfamiliar man entered. He wore a suit decorated with an unbelievable number of sharp edges, looking strikingly similar to the many eccentrically dressed characters on the posters. His short dark hair was slicked down, and he wore a stylized pair of sunglasses.

"Nichols, who're these two?" he asked in a sharp voice.

(I doubt this guy could possibly look any more Hollywood if he staked his life on it.)

"They're, uh, WP's legal team." Pryce answered, hiding his sudden nervousness rather poorly. The newcomer didn't notice, however, as he was -Phoenix assumed, at least; the glasses made it rather hard to tell- focused on her and Matty.

"Lawyers, heh? Yeah, the cops were tellin' me 'bout what you've been up to. What're ya doin' here, though? Shouldn't you be over at the trailer lot with the rest of them?" he asked the question forcefully, as if hiding a demand under his choice of words.

"Just following up on a hunch." Phoenix said. "Are you Dai Vasquez?"

"Could be." he answered, pulling up a chair. "What's it to you?"

"If you have the time, I'd like to ask you a bit about Ms. Hammer's murder."

Vasquez paused. Tilting his sunglasses downward slightly, he gave Phoenix an unnerving stare for a few seconds before turning to Pryce. "Nichols, where da hell is Salina?"

"No idea, Mr. Vasquez." Pryce said.

Vasquez gave an impatient sort of growl.

"Tell ya what, lady; you go find Salina and drag her ass here, and I'll talk to ya 'bout Hammer." he said.

(Oh, this guy's gonna be just _delightful_ if he shows up in court...)

"Sounds fine." Phoenix replied. "We needed to talk to her, as well."

"Well, that's just dandy. Now get the hell outta here." Vasquez barked, motioning toward the door.

(You don't need to tell _me _twice.)

**October 17th, 2:03 PM**

**Global Studios**

**Main Lot**

"All I'm saying is that it _might've_ helped to ask what this lady looks like, Boss."

"Hey, the less time I have to spend in the same room as that guy, the better off I'm gonna feel. Just being near him for two minutes gave me every bad vibe in the book."

This exchange marked the end of Phoenix and Matty's argument. Phoenix had firmly refused to make any further contact with Vasquez until they had met with the director, in spite of Matty's insistence that it was the best choice for locating the woman efficiently. After deciding that the next best person to ask on the matter would be Detective Gumshoe, they had returned to the main studio lot.

Unfortunately, the detective was nowhere in sight, with only a few police officers and detectives scattered across the area, most likely on patrol duty.

"Oh, Deb?" responded the first detective that they asked, "Yeah, she was still over by the trailers with Prosecutor Edgeworth last time I saw her."

"Terrific..." Phoenix muttered as Matty thanked the detective.

"Boss, is it really gonna kill you to run into Ms. Edgeworth just once? How d'you even know if she's gonna try to talk to you?" Matty asked as they set off for the trailer lot.

Phoenix sighed. "I don't know, honestly. Part of me knows that we need to get on with the investigation, but another part just feels like it's a really bad idea to see her right now."

"Well, we can argue about your parts later. Now come on." Matty said, grabbing her wrist.

(Note to self, don't rely on Matty for emotional support.)

**October 17th, 2:12 PM**

**Global Studios**

**Trailer Lot**

It took Matty a few seconds to notice that Phoenix wasn't next to him anymore.

"Boss, are you-" he stopped as he turned around, seeing no sign of her. Taking a few steps back, he found her making a poor attempt to act nonchalant at the gate. "_Boss..._"

Phoenix grinned nervously. "Don't worry, I trust you. You can find her by yourself."

"Y'know, Boss, you insult _my _maturity almost every single day," Matty began impatiently.

"I know... I'm sorry, Matty, but please just do this for me. It'll only take you a minute."

Something about her tone caught Matty's attention; there was a hint of desperation in Phoenix's voice that he wasn't used to hearing. He sighed.

"... Fine. Just don't run off anywhere cool without me."

* * *

Matty caught no shortage of strange looks from the police as he walked through the lot. He had become used to Phoenix enthusiastically flashing her badge whenever an officer approached them, but as he lacked any similar identification, he could only hope that none of the investigators became suspicious. He caught sight of Detective Gumshoe a short distance away, glancing impatiently around at the crowd. She noticed him as he approached.

"Oh-! I was hopin' I'd run into you, kid." she said.

"Same here." Matty replied.

"Why's that?" Gumshoe asked, surprised.

"Me and Phoenix need to talk to the studio's director, and we figured you'd know where to find her."

"Ms. Manella? Yeah, Ms. Edgeworth was havin' a chat with her a little while ago. She'll still be around here, somewhere. Now, 'bout why I needed to talk to you two..." Gumshoe trailed off, looking around. "Say... where's Ms. Wright, anyway?"

"Hiding." Matty answered flatly. Seeing the detective's confused expression, he added, "From Ms. Edgeworth."

"Ah. I get ya. Can't say I blame her; Ms. Edgeworth's been a terror since the trial this mornin'. I shouldn't keep talking about her behind her back, though. Anyway, I needed to confirm somethin' with you two. I can't leave this area until we're done with the initial search, so it's good that ya came by. You remember that kid that was here, yesterday, right? The one with the camera?"

"Hard to forget." Matty said, remembering the picture the girl had taken.

"Well, Ms. Edgeworth is in the middle of findin' witnesses for tomorrow, and that kid's on the list of possibilities. Did she say anythin' yesterday to suggest that she was here on the day of the murder?"

Matty thought back to their brief encounter with the girl, trying to recall as many details as possible. "Sorry, Detective. I can't think of anything."

"It's fine, kid. Honestly, the way Ms. Edgeworth's goin' after every possible lead, I doubt she'll care. I wouldn't be too surprised if she finds some way to drag in every person on the list."

"Where is she right now, anyway? Matty asked.

"Ms. Edgeworth? Like I said, she was talkin' to witnesses last I saw her. She's probably done with Ms. Manella by now, so you should be able to find her over behind the trailers." Gumshoe answered, flipping her records book open.

"Why behind the trailers?"

"It's about the only quiet place you'll find in this lot."

"Fair enough."

Matty was becoming quite curious about what exactly was in Gumshoe's records book that kept her attention so focused on it, but the question would have to wait. He headed off for the parked trailers, which were still mobbed by police officers.

Behind Powers' trailer, he spotted a familiar prosecutor speaking to another detective, and a few steps away, a short woman he didn't recognize.

From the first sight of her, it was quite clear that he had never seen the woman before in his life. She was certainly distinctive enough to be sure of that. Her clothing was eccentric to the point that it made his acolyte gear look practically boring. An overlarge sweater with the face of the Steel Samurai patterned across the front was the most immediately eye-catching part of her outfit, followed by what was likely to be the most noticeable piece of headgear he had ever seen. Perched atop the woman's head was a spectacularly flashy paper fan attached to a baseball cap. The fan was patterned with a combination of Japanese symbols and illegible scribbles that Matty suspected the woman had added herself. On the less cringe-inducing side of her attire, she wore a round pair of glasses, which, in spite of being easily twice the size of any ordinary pair, were still somehow the most natural-looking part of her clothing.

Without warning, she suddenly turned toward him. Her large glasses appeared to be magnifying her eyes, giving an inhuman edge to her stare.

"**MIGHT I JUST SAY, SIR,**" she abruptly shouted across the twenty foot gap between them in a discordantly uneven voice, "**YOU HAVE AN INSPIRINGLY UNIQUE OUTFIT.**"

Matty stared back, drawing a complete blank on how best to respond. "Uh..."

"**I THINK YOU MAY HAVE JUST GIVEN ME THE CREATIVE SPARK I NEEDED FOR MY NEXT PROJECT.**" the woman continued, her voice overpowering the ongoing rumble of sound from the police force.

"Wouldn't it be better if you came over here to talk to me...?" Matty called back hesitantly.

The woman waited a few moments to respond. "**I HADN'T THOUGHT OF THAT.**"

She walked toward him, stopping considerably closer to him than he would have liked. Her magnified stare was still looking over his clothing. Matty took half a step back, but the woman immediately moved forward to keep the distance equal.

"**IT'S AN ENCHANTINGLY BOLD DESIGN.**" she shouted with the same volume as before. Matty recoiled in surprise.

"Jeez, lady, I'm right in front of you-!" he yelped.

"**Oh. Right.**" the woman replied. She wasn't shouting anymore, but her voice was still significantly louder than necessary. "**I'm sorry, but your outfit really caught my attention.**"

"So I gathered." Matty said, still attempting to recover from the shock.

"**I'm Salina Manella, the director of The Steel Samurai.**_"_ the woman went on, confirming the fear that had quickly grown in Matty's mind.

(Phoenix is gonna love this one...)

"Matty Fey." he responded.

"**So, you're half of Wanda's lawyer, then?"**

Matty opened his mouth to respond, but he seemed to freeze in place as his mind properly registered what Salina had said. Several seconds passed, during which his mouth simply hung open, failing to produce a response.

(I hope he finds her soon. Mr. Vasquez didn't really seem like the type to sit patiently and wait for someone.)

Phoenix hadn't left the gate since Matty's departure. Her resolve to avoid Edgeworth until the trial wasn't weakening in the slightest, but she was beginning to feel guilty for having sent her assistant off without any clear idea of who he was searching for. She was briefly considering a quick check around the outer edge of the trailer lot for any sign of either of them when a startlingly loud voice sounded over the distant rumble of noise from the police force.

"**They give you a badge, don't they? You should wear yours openly, so everyone knows who you are. I'd bet a badge would make your robes look even better if you attached it to just the right place-"**

The speaker came into view, following very closely behind Matty. Her outfit immediately caught Phoenix's attention; somehow, the absurdity of her appearance made Matty's channeling robes look nearly sane.

"_And here she is._" Matty interrupted loudly. "That's my boss, Phoenix Wright, over there."

Phoenix idly wondered whether Matty had been hoping that the woman would approach her instead and give him some space, which was understandable as she instead decided to shout over his shoulder.

"**HI, MA'AM. I'M SALINA MANELLA.**"

Phoenix looked back in partial disbelief. From what she could see, Salina didn't seem to be displaying any sort of reaction to Matty's obvious discomfort, which left her uncertain as to what would be the best response. In the moments that followed, her assistant's expression began to suggest that he was considering some violent response of his own, and she opted to defuse the situation.

"It's... nice to meet you, Ms. Manella, but we don't really have time to talk. Mr. Vasquez asked us to bring you to Studio One."

"**OH! WE SHOULD GO, THEN. DAI DOESN'T LIKE WAITING.**"

Salina pushed past Matty and took off at a startling pace after her reply.

"Your ears still doing alright?" Phoenix asked, approaching Matty. The latter gave a frustrated sigh.

"_Never been better_." he growled. Without another word, he walked off after Salina.

**October 17th, 2:30 PM**

**Global Studios**

**Studio One**

"Hah! Lady of the hour!" Vasquez barked from the office doorway.

"**HEY, DAI!" **Salina shouted back, waving energetically. She rushed toward the small building and vanished through the doorway, leaving Phoenix and Matty on the outside step with Vasquez.

"You two wait out here." he said in place of a thank-you.

After the door swung shut, Matty let out an angry sort of growl, taking Phoenix by surprise.

"Something wrong?" she asked in concern.

"It's just..." Matty struggled to find words to describe his frustration for a second or two, "I don't even really _want_ to talk to this guy."

"Why's that?"

Matty paused, staring suspiciously at Phoenix, as if he suspected a joke.

"Matty-?"

"_Because he's an asshat!_" he suddenly exclaimed.

In spite of herself, Phoenix couldn't help but laugh. Taking a moment to calm herself, she replied, "Well, that might not be the exact choice of words I would've used, but-"

"You agree, though, right?"

Briefly succumbing to laughter again, Phoenix responded, "I guess I do. He's not exactly subtle about it."

"He _knew _that he was sending us to track down the most annoying person in the studio, and he wouldn't even thank us for it afterward!"

Matty continued on in this manner for quite a while, with Phoenix quickly deciding to close the office's open window to avoid any chance of Vasquez hearing the tirade. This turned out to be a good decision, as Matty's rant eventually reached a point of rivaling the worst of Oldbag's. Even after Matty had gradually calmed down, it still took another ten minutes for the studio staff to finish with their meeting. The door swung open, and Salina exited first. Mercifully, the brief chat that had occupied their walk back to Studio One had been enough for them to conclude that she had nothing helpful to say, which left the impending interview with Vasquez as their last remaining goal.

"Nichols. Out." they heard Vasquez snap from inside the small building. Pryce exited in a hurry a few seconds later. Once he was off the lot, Vasquez leaned out the doorway. "All right. Come in." he grunted, holding the door open.

Nothing appeared to have been moved around in the room since their last visit. Matty dropped onto one of the chairs at the centre table immediately, looking like he hoped to get the conversation over with as quickly as possible. Phoenix was about to sit down as well when she noticed Vasquez still standing at the door.

"Why're you locking the door?" she inquired.

Vasquez looked toward her for a moment. "... Just a precaution." he said dismissively.

(Against _what_, exactly?)

Once sure that the door was secure, he moved to the table. "Ask away."

"Er..." Phoenix mumbled, suddenly unsure as to where she should start.

"I'll give ya a quick warning, lady." Vasquez cut in, his tone unclear. "The cops already wasted enough of my time today. I don't wanna find out that we arranged this meetin' just so you could stutter at me all damn day."

Phoenix thought she noticed a flash of anger cross Matty's face for a split second, and quickly replied, "Right. Sorry. Like I said earlier, we need to talk to you about Ms. Hammer."

"Riiiight. Janine. Sure, shoot."

"What sort of relationship did the two of you have?"

"Business. When Janine wanted to talk, it was about work. Her pay, the roles we had lined up for her, the whole deal."

"Did you talk to her at all on the day of the murder?"

"Yeah. She came 'round just before we started the practice that day."

"What did she want to discuss?"

"What else? Work. She was gettin' kinda... kinda nervous about some of the stuff the studio's planning for next year."

"Hmm..." Phoenix considered this. (Doesn't sound like this really matters.)

"And before ya ask, no, I'm not tellin' ya about what those plans are."

"No problem. Could you tell me what sort of things the police asked you about?

"Wasn't much I could tell 'em. They mostly just wanted to know what I was up to during that evening."

"Alright. What about Ms. Hammer's past with the studio?"

"What about it?"

"We talked to Ms. Powers in the detention centre the day after the murder, but she didn't have many details about Ms. Hammer's time here."

Vasquez stood up from his chair. Taking a few steps away from the table, he said, "Yeah. I could tell ya a bit about her. Powers and Hammer joined the studio two years ago. They wanted to work as stunt doubles for our two stars at the time, but as things turned out, they ended up replacing them instead. See, I'd had a few, uh, 'disagreements' with the two guys we had in those roles, and I figured it'd be best for the studio if we let them go instead of draggin' it out."

Phoenix was about to inquire further when Vasquez added, "Course, if I'd known what Hammer was gonna do..." he trailed off. He had said it in an undertone, as if it weren't really directed at Phoenix.

"Did you run into a problem with Ms. Hammer, as well?" Phoenix asked.

Vasquez looked toward her in surprise for a brief moment. It seemed that he hadn't expected her to hear him. "It was two years ago, lady. It's got nothin' to do with this."

(Wait... why's he suddenly defensive about it?)

"I'll be the judge of that." Phoenix replied firmly. She partly regretted it afterwards, as Vasquez momentarily shot her a fierce glare.

"I'll warn ya again." he growled. "Don't push it. But, alright, I'll tell ya about it." he paced over to the window. Casting a quick glance around the lot, he drew the blinds shut and began to slowly walk around the room. "This was just a few months after we hired Wanda and Janine on. We were goin' through a practice for a few scenes, just like a few nights ago. Wanda had gone home for the night, but Janine was still here, working with another one of our actresses. Girl's name was Marlene."

He paused after saying this, leading Matty to interject with, "... You said 'was'?"

Vasquez stopped pacing and glanced at Matty. He took off his sunglasses. "Yeah. I did. I'm gettin' there." he said in a noticeably quieter voice than before. Resuming his slow walk, he continued, "See, Marlene was... she joined the studio around the same time I did, about six years back. Anyway, like I said, she was in the practice with Hammer. Nothing seemed outta place until we were nearly done. They were just starting one of the faster parts of the choreography when..." he paused again, this time uttering a low sigh. "... there was an accident. Marlene ended up dead."

Phoenix nearly fell out of her chair. "What-!? You're saying that Ms. Hammer accidentally killed-"

"That's right." Vasquez cut in forcefully. "It was a damn mess. One minute, everything was on schedule like normal, next minute everything's gone to shit and there's a body on the floor."

"B-but, nobody else has ever mentioned this on the case-"

"Cover-up." Vasquez said flatly.

"... What?"

"I said it was covered up. We kept it away from the media. The studio was already on thin ice back then, we'd have been sunk if the media got their hands on it."

Phoenix exchanged a questioning glance with Matty.

(Something's not right here... Yesterday, Pryce told us that Mr. Vasquez considers his actors expendable. If he wanted to protect the studio, he could've just let Ms. Hammer take the fall for the accident. Why would he cover the whole thing up...?)

"We're done." Vasquez said sharply, ending Phoenix's train of thought.

"Could I ask you one more thing before-"

"_We're done_." Vasquez repeated. "Leave." he motioned toward the door.

"But-"

"You wanted to talk about Hammer, and that's all I'm tellin' you. That accident has nothing to do with her dying, and if you can't believe that, don't bother coming back. Now get out." he crossed the room and threw the door open.

"Let's just go, Boss." Matty urged, heading for the door.

After a second's hesitation, Phoenix stood up. She followed Matty to the door, but stopped on the threshold.

"Will you be a witness in the trial tomorrow?" she asked over her shoulder.

"That's what the cops want, yeah." Vasquez answered impatiently.

"Alright. Thanks for your time, then, Mr. Vas-"

Phoenix stopped as the door slammed shut inches away from her face.

"See? Asshat."

* * *

"Matty, did something seem off about that guy's story?" Phoenix asked once they reached the studio's pathway.

"You bet." Matty answered.

"Like, for instance, how he says that the studio covered up the accident two years ago, which doesn't make any sense if we consider what Pryce told us yesterday? Y'know, how Mr. Vasquez usually just fires people if they end up in legal trouble?"

"Yeah, that bothered me, too."

"We'd better look into this. I'm starting to suspect that we're missing something important here. If that accident really isn't related to Ms. Hammer's murder, there's no way he would've gotten that defensive talking about it."

Detective Gumshoe was leaning against the information booth nearest to the studio entrance. She snapped her records book shut as she caught sight of Phoenix and Matty approaching.

"Were you two just talkin' to Vasquez?" she called across the empty lot. Getting two affirmative nods in response, she straightened up and approached them. "It's not really my place to ask, but did you get anything out of him?" she asked as they met up in the middle of the lot.

"A possible lead." Phoenix responded.

"Izzat so? Sounds like ya did better than us, then. Stubborn jerkwad wouldn't give us an inch."

"Well, uh, sorry to hear that, Detective-" Matty said, grabbing Phoenix's arm, "but we don't have any time to talk about it right now."

Once Matty had led her a short distance away from the detective, Phoenix asked, "Why're you suddenly in such a hurry?"

"We can't just _tell _her about our lead, right? We oughta get going so we can at least try to get ahead of the police on something."

Phoenix tried to think up a counterargument, but nothing surfaced. "OK, good point. Where d'you think we should start, though?"

Matty dropped his gaze to the ground as he thought it over. "Welllll... I guess there's a chance the police might have some info about the accident, but if the studio covered it up..."

"There's gotta be _something_. I don't care what kind of 'connections' the guy has, there's no way he could've completely buried it."

**October 17th, 3:40 PM**

**Criminal Affairs Department**

A young police officer greeted them at the entrance. It didn't take more than a quick flash of Phoenix's badge to convince him to bring them into the evidence room, but once inside, the process slowed down.

"Sooo... You know when this accident happened, but that's it?" the officer asked after being given a quick summary of what they were searching for.

"That's about it." Phoenix confirmed.

"Huh. Well, ma'am, I can see what's here. Can't promise that it'll be quick, though."

Unfortunately, this statement rang very true. Even after nearly forty minutes of listening to the officer digging through file folders and occasionally rattling off a case summary, they hadn't found anything involving Global Studios.

"Maybe we should stop looking through the suspicious deaths?" Matty suggested.

"Where else would we check?" Phoenix asked.

"I dunno. I mean, I know the guy's suspicious as all hell, but if Mr. Vasquez really did want to protect Ms. Hammer for some reason, maybe he made sure the police only ever considered it an accident?"

"I hadn't thought of that. Good idea."

In a rare occurrence, Matty's intuition turned out to be spot on. The officer handed Phoenix a folder on request once the name 'Global Studios' cropped up.

"Let's see... Accidental death... by _impalement,_ yikes... this sounds about ri-" her breath caught in her throat as she spotted something on the document.

Matty leaned forward to see the page. "What's up?"

"The... victim's name." Phoenix mumbled. "I think it all fits."

"And the name is...?"

"Marlene Vasquez."

* * *

"This is it! This has to be it!" Matty said excitedly for what had to be the seventh time. They were pulling into the studio parking lot as he reread the file yet again.

"There's still something it doesn't answer, Matty." Phoenix said, stopping in her usual parking space.

"What?"

"Why did Mr. Vasquez cover it up in the first place? If Marlene was related to him in some way, why would he have gone so far to protect Ms. Hammer after the accident? It'd make sense if it was the other way around, but..."

They exchanged a few ideas on the way back to the front gate. As the neared the entrance, Oldbag stuck his head out of the security booth.

"Hey-!" he barked as they passed by. Both ignored him completely.

"You think we _should_ tell the detectives here about it?" Matty asked.

"I don't know. I can't see how we'd really be worse off if Edgeworth found out about it, but I'm still not sure if-"

"HEY!" Oldbag repeated in his full shouting voice. Against her better judgement, Phoenix glanced back.

"Is something actually wrong?" she asked.

"For once, no. But if you keep up that tone, there just might be." Oldbag said, leaving the booth. He approached them, but even up close, it was impossible to read his expression behind the glasses and moustache. "When you were walking in, I heard one of you say something."

"What's that?"

"Marlene. Haven't heard that name in a year or so, now." Oldbag answered.

"Makes sense. What about it?"

"You two're digging up dirt on Vasquez, aren't you?"

"Maybe not exactly, but-"

"But you're lookin' into the accident two years ago?" Oldbag insisted, his expression remaining impenetrable.

"Yes. Why, do you know something about it?"

"You bet your stupid little badge I do." Oldbag said.

Trying to ignore the insult, Phoenix asked, "What have you got, then?"

"Blackmail." Oldbag replied promptly.

"What...?"

"Vasquez. The producer. He's been blackmailing Hammer for two years now. Ever since she offed his sister."

"What-?"

"It was a fine little setup he stuck her in, too. Covered the accident up and used it to take control of Hammer's career."

"Wh-... Why didn't you mention this earlier!?"

Oldbag grunted dismissively. "Nobody asked."

Without another word, he turned around and returned to the security station. Phoenix watched him in astonishment.

"Er... thanks...?" she called to his retreating back.

"Don't mention it." Oldbag shouted back. He stopped just inside the booth's doorway and looked back. "I mean that! _Don't _mention it!"

(...)

"Well." Matty said. "That was different."

"I... I think Mr. Oldbag might've just given us exactly what we need!" Phoenix replied in disbelief.

"I almost hope he didn't. I'm never gonna live it down if that old crank saves our asses."

**October 17th, 5:04 PM**

**Global Studios**

**Studio One**

Phoenix knocked sharply on the locked door. There was a brief sound of muffled footsteps before the handle turned. As the door opened, Vasquez's voice growled, "That better not be- _SON OF A-_"

The door slammed shut again. Vasquez's face had been partially visible just long enough to register who was knocking before he refused them entry.

"Mr. Vasquez!" Matty shouted. "We need to talk to you again, dammit! Open the door!"

Silence hung in the air for a moment. Matty was taking in a breath to shout again when the door opened.

"I'll give you one sentence to keep my interest." Vasquez said.

"Only need two words, actually: Marlene Vasquez." Phoenix said. Vasquez stared directly into her eyes. After a few tense moments passed, he kicked the door open fully and backed up into the room.

"What the hell d'you want with my sister?" he demanded once Phoenix and Matty had entered.

"Details." Phoenix said simply. "Did Janine Hammer kill your sister?"

Vasquez looked furious. "... Without a doubt." he said, his voice trembling with suppressed anger.

"Was it an accident or not?"

"If it hadn't been, I wouldn't have let Hammer live to see the investigation." he said, his voice stability failing him.

"One more question. If you used your sister's death to blackmail Ms. Hammer,"

"I'M. WARNING. YOU." Vasquez snarled.

"Why is she dead now, and who killed her?" Matty finished the question.

Vasquez turned his glare on Matty. "_That's over the line, Slick."_

He held the furious glare for only a split second before whirling around and throwing the office's door open violently. Turning his head to the side, he shouted, "You know what to do!" and stormed off into the trees lining the side of the lot.

"What's he-" Matty broke off as a group of men in dark clothes emerged from next to the small building. They entered the room, all staring at the two of them.

"Huh. Ya don't look like I imagined." quipped a stocky man in a heavy-looking coat. Without warning, two of the intruders darted around behind Phoenix and Matty, taking a firm grip on their arms.

"What the hell-!?" Phoenix aimed a kick at the shins of the man behind her.

"Who-oa-! Lady's got a temper!" he laughed.

"Not as much as this one!" answered the man restraining Matty. Matty was furiously struggling, doing everything in his ability to continue his futile effort to free himself.

"Who the hell are you, anyway!?" he demanded.

"Connections." Phoenix replied grimly.

"We-ell, lookaddat!" said another of the men. "She did her homework, too."

Taking a step toward Phoenix, he leaned close to her face.

Instinctively, Phoenix swung her head forward and knocked him back.

"Gah-! Dat wasn't smart, lady." the man said. He swung his arm back and aggressively backhanded her face.

"Get the hell away from her!" Matty shouted with a startling amount of force. With a violent shove, he knocked the man holding him backward, and managed to free one of his arms. He aimed a punch at the face of the attacker, which made its mark with a loud crunch. The man gave a pained grunt, clapping a hand to his nose.

Before Matty could react properly, the man holding his other wrist shoved him to the floor. The punch victim stooped down next to him and took a crushing hold of his free hand.

"Matty-!" Phoenix shrieked, still unable to free herself. The man was uttering a quiet stream of obscenities as he removed his hand from his face. His nose looked bent far out of shape from the force of Matty's punch. Phoenix saw him take a hold of one of Matty's fingers and turned away just in time to avoid seeing what happened next. She could not, however, block out the sickening crack that followed or Matty's scream of pain. His agonized yell continued for several seconds as the man pulled him back upright.

"Alright, kid. You've still got yourself nine good fingers left. Unless you wanna make it eight, you'll-"

-BANG-

The door swung open again. This time, Detective Gumshoe rushed in first, flanked by five other officers.

"FREEZE!" she ordered, pointing a gun at the unoccupied group of attackers.

"Shit..." the man restraining Phoenix muttered. He released his hold on her wrists and she darted toward Matty, who was hunched over, covering his injured hand.

"You two! Out the door!" Gumshoe barked, keeping her eyes and gun trained on the panicked group.

Matty slumped against Phoenix, breathing raggedly. She pulled him onto her shoulder and moved toward the door. Once outside, she saw a second group of police positioned around the doors.

"Ma'am, is your friend hurt?" one of them asked urgently.

"_Son of a bitch nearly broke my finger off-..." _Matty groaned through his shaking breaths.

"Garrett! Stanton! Call it in and get him first aid!" the officer shouted to two others.

"On it!" one of them, a woman, shouted back. Both darted forward, lifting Matty off the ground.

Phoenix watched them quickly leaving the lot. She suddenly became aware of how panicked her own breaths were. Her legs collapsed from under her, leaving her slumped down on the dirt ground.

"Ma'am, are you injured?" the officer asked.

"No..." she replied, struggling to stand back up. The entire situation couldn't have taken more than a minute by her estimate, but her mind was clouded with sudden fear and panic. "How did you know to come here, officer...?"

"Debra saw you two heading over here alone. She thought something seemed off about it, so she brought us along after you."

"Huh... Tell her I said thanks, then..."

"Becker, get her to the ambulance with her friend. Just in case." the officer ordered.

* * *

Within ten minutes, Phoenix was sitting in the back of an ambulance, sobbing.

Matty was still in obvious pain, with a paramedic tending to his hand. "Hey, Boss...?" he started. Phoenix couldn't manage a reply. "Boss... Nix, please stop crying... That's hurting me a whole lot more than my hand is." Phoenix very much doubted that, but she gradually forced herself to calm down. She was amazed to see Matty smiling at her as she looked up.

"Heh... guess I'll have to take a break from beating you at video games, huh?" he said shakily.

Phoenix was beginning to doubt her previous concerns about Matty's emotional integrity as she listened to him in disbelief.

"Might not be able to help you out tomorrow, though. S-sorry about that..." he said before his strained expression finally cracked and he began to groan in pain again.

"Matty..." Phoenix mumbled.

"J-... agh... Just make sure you get that guy in court tomorrow, OK? For the sake of my finger, I mean."

* * *

_Whooooaaaa_

_I did an update thinggggg_

There is very little I can say to express my apologies for the lateness of this one. I've just about pulled up everything already in previous chapters.

I don't like rewriting filler from the game, dammit


End file.
